Lessons from 2016 campaign

AS we go to the polls tomorrow, May 9, many will surely feel emotionally drained by the overload of the noise and clatter of the campaign, the bitter exchanges, bullying on social media, charges and counter-charges by candidates.

Without a doubt the last campaign period had exceeded the limits and boundaries of civility in politics. Certainly, there are important lessons that we should not forget without seeking ways to stop if not minimize the recurrence of the events and activities that brought out in the worst in us, from flouting election laws to liberally committing libel and cyber-bullying.

The criminal case filed by a victim of cyber-bullying was timely and it quickly held back users of Facebook and Twitter from further misusing social media.

Our new set of congressmen can do our country a good turn by filing bills that will seek to amend or introduce new laws regulating postering, use of trompas (mobile sound vans), making it easier to indict candidates who resort to vote-buying.

Meanwhile, we join the nation in praying that our election will culminate with results brought by a credible process where losers accept their fate quietly, and winners are magnanimous in their victory.

  

Duterte unscathed

SEN. Trillanes may have succeeded in demolishing the presidential bid of Jojo Binay with his long-playing attack on Binay’s alleged corruption practices while serving as Makati mayor.  His Binay-bashing, mounted long before the campaign had begun, had brought Mr. Binay considerably down in the ratings.

Perhaps elated by this, Mr. Trillanes tried the trick on presidential derby leader Mayor Rodrigo Duterte in desperate hopes of also pulling the latter down in the surveys.  But this time, his expose of Duterte’s alleged million-peso bank account at BPI bank backfired and had proved nothing. BPI said Mr. Duterte had no accounts of that much. Pathetically, Mr. Trillanes’ efforts, quite correctly, were all in vain.  Mayor Duterte emerged unscathed.

But why did Mr. Trillanes suddenly hurl mud on Mayor Duterte this late in the campaign season? Why did he spend time hitting Mr. Duterte—not his political foe—instead of pouring precious hours in his bid for the vice presidency?

Maybe, “attack dogs” are simply trained that way.  They just attack blindly, like wild goons shooting from the hip.  Done for a fee?  Our lips are sealed.

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