There was this news about a big majority of Filipinos having yet to feel any change in their bad conditions. Meaning, there appears to be no progress at all after so many months of this new administration.
Not even a day had passed when the item was scrapped off the website of a national daily. Must have been the work of PR officials of government. But bad conditions are bad conditions. They and will be there no matter what you do. The only way to make these better is to really work on improving peoples’ lives. Covering them up or gagging the messenger of the bad news will not solve the problem. They will keep on floating to the surface. They might vanish momentarily every now and then only to reappear again later.
There was really no progress and inflation or high prices of basic commodities are galloping like wild horses. What is worse is for anyone to have expected any change when there were no changes on how things are being run in this country. Everything is still the usual traditional politics. Nobody in government appears to be thinking of new ways to get things done.
Are there no bright kids to try new methods with the welfare of the masses considered as of paramount importance? Government officials are still of the mindset that building a fat war-chest for the next election was the best way to assure one’s survival in politics. So preoccupation with grease money or (SOP) is the norm.
That is, however, a reaction to our stupidity as voters. We vote for whoever gave us favors in terms of cash, positions or government contracts. Track records of good performance in governance is never a factor. If ever, it is a very minor one.
For those who were never recipients of such, name recall is the only basis when they are in the polling places. No effort at all was exerted by them to weigh who among the candidates would deliver goods for the majority’s welfare.
So it is a vicious cycle. Candidates who never cared, who could corrupt more, would buy votes for a thousand or two per vote, would win again. And we would suffer again due to bad and corrupt governance. And the cycle would go on forever. We are cursed by our stupidity.**