Our Rotten Political System

I used to have a great interest in politics. Back in college when i ran for a position in the student council, all those talk about national issues perked my interest. I became so involved that all the news about politicians, how they're doing everything wrong, gave me such huge headaches. When I entered med school, my interest waned--- probably because of all the studying (yeah right!) that i had to do... but mostly because my new set of peers had little interest in the topic. How could I maintain interest when I had no one to discuss such topics with? That was a blessing in disguise though. With the way politicians have been running the country, my headaches would have probably become worse. Thankfully, I've been almost headache free for 5 years now--- free from headaches you get from politics.

Now that I've been basically a bum, I had time to really read newspapers again--- the way I used to, right down to the editorials. And I had time to watch the news again, and see what's up with the country. Politicians are still the same. Come to think of it, the political situation in this country seems to have gotten worse. Politicians are so full of sh*t. never have I seen such individuals who are driven by selfish motives. It seems that their every action is carried out with such careful planning and with such precision, to reach the ultimate goal of personal gain. i'm aware that not all politicians are like that. Following the rule of probabilities, then there has to be a few decent politicians--- I just can't see any of them. I used to know one decent politician, but he died of an incurable illness a few years back. That's funny. There we had one decent politician, yet the Lord took him away, leaving us with the scums. Maybe politicians are meant to be scums--- try to be the exception, and you're eliminated from the game.

What makes their selfish motives even harder to swallow, is the fact that politicians, by definition, are meant to serve others, and not their own selves! Here they are acting like kings, like they own the streets they walk in, expecting all of us common folk to bow before them, to praise them, to serve them. Ideally, they should be the ones serving us! I remember one time, when I was stuck in a traffic jam, and this politician's vehicle was bullying its way through the traffic, complete with sirens and motorcycle escorts, expecting us common folk to give way to them. A lot of vehicles did give way to them, but not me! So what if he's a politician?! that doesn't make him king! That doesn't mean we should all give way for him! That doesn't give him the right to be ahead of us! I don't care if he was late for a meeting or something, I also had plans that afternoon. He should stay stuck and wait in the traffic like the rest of us. Then one of the motorcycles stopped beside the driver's side of my car, the escort giving me a dagger look. I didn't care, I wasn't going to give up my place, I wasn't going to give way. Maybe if it was an ambulance, or if there was an emergency. I won't give way to a scummy politician. The way he's lording over the roads is proof enough that he's scum. I just gave his escort a dagger look back.

I cannot think of a far greater worse disservice to mankind, than to be something that is the complete opposite of what you should be. I think a lot a new politicians out there are decent... most fresh graduates from universities are idealistic. They want to change the rotten system. They want to make things right. But eventually, the temptation may be too great to resist--- they eventually get swallowed up by the rotten system. They become one of those people they used to despise, they become one of those they wanted to change.

So what's new with the world of politics lately? All the commotion about charter change nauseates me. Especially the scum that we refer to as the speaker of the house. I agree that the constitution should be overhauled--- it's dated, and it has a lot of provisions that seem to be contrasting... probably because it was rushed, in a way. But it shouldn't be changed when selfish motives are the ones that are prioritized. Does he really think that the people in this country cannot see his selfish motives? He knows that he is unpopular with the masses, so he want to change the charter so that he can run for the position of prime minister. It's so evident, that he seems like such a big liar as he denies this. With the way he managed to manipulate the men and women of congress, like blind, stupid, brainless followers--- he will surely win. But he knows that people won't listen to anything he has to offer because they can see through him, so he brings out all these arguments to make charter change pleasing to the eye. He mentions progressive, first world countries who have a parliamentary form of government, and argues that they are progressive because of their form of government. He must really think we are stupid. Is he aware of those many poor nations who have a parliamentary form of government? is he aware of those progressive nations who maintain a presidential form of government? i cannot believe he had the guts to say something like that on the radio and on national TV! Either he's a big moron, or he's an incredibly scheming, devious prick. I believe he's the latter. I know this will sound really mean, but maybe the Lord took his daughter away because no good person deserves to have such scum for a parent.

Somehow, i am thankful that I am not a son of a politician. Others are not as lucky. Who can forget that senator who sounds like a lunatic. She's not only crazy, she's also a liar. She lies for self gain, which is something politicians aim for. One time she said she would jump off a plane,, or have herself shot by a firing squad, if this or that happened. She would've been declared a hero if she fulfilled her promises, the country would've thanked her for ridding itself of a politican like her. But what i cannot stomach was how she swore by her son's grave, her son who had just commited suicide at that time, that she will never run for politics again. And Lo and Behold-- come election time, she was one of the most prominent candidates. What kind of person would stoop down to such a level of lying? What kind of people are we choosing as leaders of our country?

And as for the most prominent liar of all, the exalted president of our nation? I never liked her, even from the very start of her political career. It was evident from the very beginning that she's an opportunist, i wonder how many people fail to see that. She goes with the good, and always leaves the bad, even if she has sucked the bad ones dry once upon a time. The epitome of what you would call user friendly. fair weathered friend. And her showbiz antics are sickening. Everything about her seems to be an act, you'd have to wonder what her real face looks like. And I know for a fact that she's corrupt... all those nasty rumors are true. The whole family is corrupt. And yet our people tolerate such a leader. Maybe we really are stupid. I for one, would want a leader I can be proud of, and not one I am ashamed of. The only instance when I did like her was when she promised not to run for presidency because she was the source of the countries divisiveness--- which was the truth. And I admired her for saying the truth, because it is very rare to hear some form of truth from a politician. But of course, she showed her true form again and turned her back on her promise. She lied. Funny how this country can tolerate such big liars. When the country had its national election a few years back, I know some people who voted for her though they didn't like her. Their defense was they were choosing between two evils. If I had to choose between the two presidential candidates, I would've chosen the one who was inexperienced with no proof of corruption than the one who had a lot of experiences, especially when it comes to corruption. For me, the inexperienced one is the lesser evil. But then, that's just me. I had to point out that there were other options. We didn't have to choose between two evils because there were other presidential candidates. They said they still won't vote for them because they had no chance of winning. Who decides who has a chance of winning anyway? The chance of winning is just a stupid perception given by press releases and promotional blitz. If the number of people who gave such reasoning voted for one of the decent candidates, then that candidate would've had a shot at winning. I know of a few people who genuinely liked her--- something i don't understand. They're intelligent people, yet they are blind to her ways. Maybe intelligence is relative. Just because you're intelligent in some aspects, doesn't make you intelligent in all others. And I wonder how we continue to tolerate such a leader, with all the negative news about her that are being exposed. In the past, we didn't tolerate such leaders, what makes it diferent now? Is it because there's no better option? That's stupid. With the huge population in this country, there are sure to be a lot of people who are better than her. Have we simply become tired? Have we suffered from too much fatigue that we now refuse to fight? If that's the case, then we deserve to have such lousy leaders.

I can never understand what goes on in the minds of voters. Sometimes, our votes make sense, and sometimes they don't. What's with the predilection for voting showbiz personalities even if they clearly can't do anything for us in the realm of politics? Are we that blind? can't we distinguish from those who can genuinely serve us from those who are just pretending to serve us? Can't we make intelligent decisions? We vote for those who have fame or fortune. We let the media do the voting for us. We choose those who's names are more familiar, we choose those who are featured more prominently on newspapers, on TV... can't we make intelligent decisions on our own? Even in my home town, politicians smell like rotten fish. The microsystem indeed mimics the macrosystem. We've had the same mayor for years. He never does anything productive, and evidently he's corrupt---yet the people keep on voting for him, despite the better alternatives who are pitted against him! Even in the smallest political units, dynasties are made, continuous support are given to those who do nothing, to those who abuse their power, and such support is extended to their kin. Why is it that most of us patronize familiarity even when it becomes rotten, and we are adamant when it comes to change? Even with signs of wear and tear, we tolerate things that are familiar, and we only throw them away when they are damaged beyond repair. Is it because of sentimentality? When our progress is at stake, we have no room for sentimentality, familiarity, nor convenience. Our inaction is viewed as support. Our silence is misinterpreted as content. From the highest position in the land, to the lowest level in politics, everything is rotten. The whole political system is rotten. Change is needed, and I'm not just talking about charter change here. No good will come out of changing the charter if the individuals running our country aren't changed. On a national level, drastic changes are being forced, and such changes can affect us all. We cannot stay aloof while these so called leaders proceed with their dirty business. If we allow these selfish individuals to do whatever they want for self gain, if we still remained silent in these turbulent times, then I would have lost all hope in this country. I would have given up on our people. A few years ago, I was contemplating going abroad because the country seemed to be going nowhere, and the inaction of its citizens further aggravated the problem. Thankfully, something woke them up, and that restored my faith in this nation. I wonder what it would take to wake us up this time.

There can never be progress unless reforms are made. SOme say the system has become too rotten, that change is impossible. Who's fault is it anyway, that the system has become too rotten? Isn't it ours? because we remained silent even as these individuals vandalize the once sacred institution that is our govenment? Reforms are possible. Drastic reforms may be too much to ask, but we can start with small reforms. Those minor reforms add up to major reforms. Even one idealistic individual can start by making that one small step. Our goals can be met as long as we all make small steps, as long as we follow that one individual clamoring for reforms. After all, we all want reforms, don't we? If I am mistaken, then all is lost. What i fear may be true, there may be no hope for this country. We will all rot with the stupid system.

If we remain indifferent and aloof in a time when action is needed, then maybe we deserve to have such stupid and selfish leaders. They are the personification of the punishment that we rightfully deserve.

It is time for us to wake up.