3-G threats

NEITHER the police nor the Commission on Elections (Comelec) seem alarmed by the inclusion of Pangasinan in the Department of Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) list of provinces considered as “areas of concern” – or “high risk” – in the May 2013 mid-term election. Provincial officials, for their part, are more concerned about how it will affect Pangasinan’s image.

But the matter should not be brushed aside because surely the DILG did not randomly pick areas to put in its list. Instead of simply making public pronouncements to the effect that the people should not worry and that being in the list is in fact advantageous for the province because it will mean there will be more police and military officers around, local authorities must take action to show the public – and convince the national government – that the perceived threats to a fair and peaceful election are being addressed.

Top of the agenda should be the identification and permanent disbandment of private armies in the province. There is a policy of tolerance being maintained during off-election season and this should be scrapped. Guns-for-hire, particularly those riding-in-tandem on motorbikes, have to be neutralized because they are a loose group that take advantage of bitter political rivalries in exchange for even a small amount of gold. Strict enforcement of the gun ban is crucial.

Our politicians, meanwhile, need to show maturity by sticking to a campaign centered on platforms – their time and effort spent on convincing the people what policies and programs they intend to pursue for the benefit of their respective communities rather than attacking their opponents. Mudslinging and all sorts of dirty campaign tricks trigger hostility and increase the perception that Pangasinan could be a dangerous spot – one where guns, goons and gold still rule – when election time comes.

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Vicious cycle

THIS is not new but it has to be said again amid impassioned debates over this malady called political dynasty: Election in this country remains, sadly, essentially a popularity contest.

Many undesirable political dynasties thrive because voters do not discern between dedicated public servants and corrupt families.  Candidates from the same family continue to inflict themselves on the electorate, regardless of how they are perceived because they know too well that the majority of voters are easily swayed by the so-called name recall and vote-buying. Likewise, the immaturity of many of our voters also contributes largely to the victory of a husband-and-wife team, siblings and in-laws lumped together in a party seeking elective posts, particularly in the local level.

It has become a vicious cycle for the corrupt political families as nakedly blatant as the succession of Mafiosi Godfathers.

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