Bicol and other regions in the Philippines have been flooded for several days due to Typhoon Kristine which also claimed 116 lives. True stories unfold about the heroism of some and the neglect of duty of many. People are rushing to help, there is also “1, 2, 3, action” just in front of the camera. Some get tired but still awake to deliver immediate relief. More elected officials are being criticized for acting like turtles on the road or having an insensitive presence while the deluge is happening while keeping their mouths shut as to why there is large-scale spending on flood control and other projects that have no clear benefit to people and natural surroundings.
Streets have been clogged, but institutions and individuals give way to bayanihan, helping others as much as possible and as much as they can. If there is a lot of criticism over sluggish disaster risk reduction efforts by both local and national government officials and those who are papogi to be praised or voted in the upcoming election, honest observations are also heard from inside and outside the country about the reliable, orderly, fast, and systematic movement of Angat Buhay and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Regarding the assistance on the ground, Atty. Leni Robredo has rallied her foundation partners: Do not complain if it is hard. Ask if necessary. And if you are going to help, help well. (“Huwag tanungin kung mahirap. Tanungin kung kailangan.”)
The No. 1 and No. 2 officials of the country (UniTeam yesterday, 2 vs 1 today) met consecutively with the Bicol-based 14th Vice President of the Republic. This was followed by large-scale donations of millions of pesos, rice, drinking water, and other relief packs from government agency PAGCOR and candidates for the 2025 polls. The ex-VP and now charity chair-worker Robredo has also filed her certificate of candidacy for Mayor of Naga, a city hit hard by the typhoon, rising swiftly by God’s mercy, and inspired by bayahinan.
Meanwhile, the Villafuertes who already built a political dynasty in Bicolandia were hit by the frustration of the people who went through their social media posts, including the picture of giving P500 each to the flood victims. The lack of a systematic aid program is obvious to them, and it seems that begging is being normalized by their dynastic clan. The Villafuertes are not the only ones doing that. Where there are political dynasties, it is normal for them to give alms, and it appears in many studies that in their provinces the poverty, hunger, and unemployment of their constituents worsen. Political dynasties do not focus on the systems of education and health despite the reported large funds in them, while the already wealthy trapos (traditional politicians) get richer and richer and acquire more and more assets here and abroad.
It will be too late before people realize how gravely controlling and abusive the Constitution-barred political dynasties are and the only thing the people can do is conform to the trend (termed in Filipino as “makisakay” or “makiayon sa kalakaran”). It is also the result of a dulled mind due to the lack of quality education. That is what politicians are good at; otherwise, they will be replaced because the people will be more educated in choosing leaders and attacking the narrow view of public service.
This is in full contrast to the Angat Buhay course of action. It has passed and maintained ISO and other quality standards, but continues to refine data on larger movements, finances, spending, inflow of donations, and ascertaining who are the most in need, without “palakasan” or patronage-ridden politics.
Angat Buhay’s message is clear (with no claim to originality, according to Robredo): “Tutulong na rin lang, tumulong na nang maayos.” At a time when many are losing hope, it is being revived. Hope is being realized or “naisasakatuparan.” It plunges or “lumulusong” so that delay does not prevail in measures of hope and uplifting of life.
In relatively young democratic countries like the Philippines, it is easier to destroy names. Some will believe in you if you are OTD or out to destroy and have nothing else to do. Ground truths like Angat Buhay’s OTD or on-time delivery are ridiculed. Pre-Internet, that was the case of truths. With the advent of hyperconnectivity, the problem exploded in the face of the world when real-time communication systems that were previously only delivered by broadcasters came into vogue. Make lies real in real time even if it is in the best of times or in a time of authentic bayanihan! Trolling has become a lucrative job, and hiring troll armies has proven effective for many winning politicians.
Their claim that they do not hurt their election opponents should not be believed for that reason. Check out: Do they not have attack dogs? They are even given positions of service and are paid by the people’s taxes.
Failure of Authorities
There was also a time when the situation was quickly reversed not in favor of corrupt politicians. They have no one to blame but themselves. They destroy their reputation. They were once entrusted with borrowed power but were intoxicated with it. People will feel that “power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” in the ever-timely and oft-repeated word of Lord Acton in 1887. Bistado na, pinagtitiwalaan pa! As I wrote in this same space in November last year when columnist Conrado de Quiros wrote 30, not only would people thank the “helpful” politicians, but they would choose them as their leaders again and again until “power corrupts absolutely.” (de Quiros, 2011; ICTJ, 2021)
If people opt to dislike knowledge — with their children coincidentally losing focus on learning from K-12 to higher education — it will be difficult to confront the authorities no matter how they try to cope with a legitimacy crisis. It will take a long time to fathom an International Relations (IR) notion of late, though it talks about global governance’s legitimacy crisis: “(It is also because of) the growing perception of partiality in the exercise of authority. In the eyes of many dissenters, the permanent employment of double standards undermines the credibility of existing authorities. To be sure, authority does not have to be equally distributed, and the rules may reflect different interests to varying degrees. However, the moment authorities exercise the rules unevenly, authority is considered hypocritical and legitimacy evaporates.” (Zürn, 2020)
Suffice to say, on the corrupting influence of power, Acton added: “Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority: still more when you superadd the tendency or the certainty of corruption by authority.”
Once more with feeling: The evaporation or disappearance of legitimacy is far from felt. Authorities, especially in the Philippines, are great pretenders (“magagaling pumorma”).
The United States of America, a democracy champion, even finds it hard to fight poverty. They continue to value education, nonetheless: “In the meantime, teaching contextual understanding of poverty, inequality, and inadequate access to resources can go a long way to building people’s understanding of what it means to be poor in this country, and indeed how valuable government assistance can be to alleviate some of the disparity and despair.” (Wagaman, Compton & Segal, 2018)
Back to the Philippines’ bayanihan: “Don’t ask if it’s hard, ask if it is important.” (Robredo, 2024, as cited in Pinigu, 2024)
Two points: The obvious aspect of helping is difficult, and so, too, is requesting help. There is a price for every request. There is trust in Angat Buhay which is their only capital, yet it is difficult for many Filipinos to understand that work is done with charity in exchange for nothing. Firstly, hasty generalization affects the foundation: that many politicians do the same to gain recognition. Secondly, trolls are out to destroy the likes of Robredo and Angat Buhay, aiming for a lasting impact. Confusion continues in society. The bright side is that, in the observation of colleagues, our higher education students and fresh graduates refuse to get confused.
