In Response to: Tamad Man Si Juan, May Pupuntahan Din

The nation is in a pretty bad state right now. Yes, we can say that its the fault of the voters that the wrong people are put in the position of leaders, but the problem is not that simple. One of the municipalities of the Dinagat Islands, 4 hours from mainland Surigao del Norte, is ruled by a political dynasty. And one election after another, the constituents consistently vote for this family, even if it has been the cause for the island's degradation (illegal logging is openly practiced and supported by the local government, foreigners continue to destroy our mountains as they extract and benefit from OUR natural resources, siltation has destroyed the corals). But every family is given 200 pesos monthly, even outside the election time, to maintain the status quo. It is sad. It is sad that the constituents are content with this, without regard to what kind of home their great grandsons and daughters will wake up to because of this irresponsible use of their resources. But it also crossed my mind, that maybe "they don't have a choice". That the weakness of the local government led to their unemployment and their poor quality of life, to the point that they need the 200 pesos every month, which, ironically, they are grateful for, making them vote for the same people come next elections.

I haven't even mentioned the political killings and violence, but that's also a different story. When a gun is pointed to your head, what choice do you have?

We are trapped in an endless cycle. But we can break away. Change will take time, but in our participation in the dealing in our society, in making our voice heard, by educating and empowering the dis-empowered, in acting, and not merely being spectators to the injustice and stench around us, we can bring the power to the people in this so called democracy.