TERM LIMIT

                Is Charter Change really for the interest of the people?               

               Congressmens’ intention for pushing Charter Change has always been suspicious in the eyes of the people. People doubt the litany of most of the politicians that Charter Change is really for the interest of the people, and that Philippines will be uplifted from the quagmire of myriad turmoil only through the amendment of the 1987 Constitution.    

                People cannot be blamed for suspecting most politicians’ intention behind Charter Change because pragmatically speaking, some (if not all) politicians always prioritize the “I” before the “WE” from the point they entered politics up to the moment of the next election.

                 Priorities of most politicians go this way. First, politicians are not only planners. They are even schemers. They think of their PUBLIC IMAGE a lot. This is a determinant if somebody plans to run in the next election. Second, they would adhere themselves to a PARTY. Of course, it is because only few politicians win through independent candidacy. Politicians always think for the “I”. The greater the efforts contributed for the party, the greater would be the party’s impact to public, then the greater the probability that they would win during the election. Third, after winning the election, they would work for CONSTITUENCY but not for the holy intention of public servitude. Politicians have to show and emphasize their good side to their constituents because politicians have to gain public support for the next election. The last (if not forgotten) among their priorities is the RULE OF LAW. They (sometimes) include it to their priority to avoid incurring penalties which could remove them from their seats. 

                Pragmatically, most politicians only think for the “I”, for their consistent control for POWER. 

                It is very disgusting that the public’s primary servant is thinking only for the “I”- of its self interest. From this line of thought, it is logical that politicians’ selfish intention for pushing Cha-cha cannot be removed from the mind of the people. 

                Should it be that among the priorities of politicians are the issues that affect the basic Filipino masses, the social class that composes the bulk of the population -  the Genuine Agrarian Reform Program which approval has long been awaited by landless farmers; the P125 wage increase across the board nationwade for the workers to help them survive the rising cost of living despite the immobility of the phasing of their assertion for their rights; the increasing number of out of school youth because of commercialized education; and the innumerable graduates still devoid of employment? These issues have already been raised for so long but had the politicians did something to act on them? Issues about the people are merely ignored by most politicians.

            Then now, why did it take only one day and a half-night for the Congressmen to verbally vote for the approval of the House Resolution 1109 for Charter Change through Constituent Assembly? Why can they rush such resolutions ang just ignore the most important ones? Why now? Why not after 2010 elections?

                Politics will improve only when public understand that the politicians are their servant. Politicians have the primary responsibility of serving the public in accordance with Codes of Conduct defined in the Constitution, the Civil Service Code Act and the unwritten social contract existing between them and the public. 

                In effect, it is the responsibility of the public to bring public servants to account whenever they deviate from their field of function.

                 Politicians should serve the people. 

                So remind politicians they work for us.