We Deserve Better!

My name is Sheryl Martinez. I am a working mom of two very young girls. I have been a taxpayer for the last 10 years or so, and at one point I have paid more than Jose Pidal has paid for his taxes.

I last voted in the 1998 election, though it doesnt matter now who I voted for then, you would be certain it wasnt Erap (who won) and neither was it JDV who finished a distant second. I was 19 years old then and that was the first time I exercised my right to Suffrage. More than anything else, it was disappointing for me to realize that the majority of Filipinos chose a popular president than a capable one because even with his experience in local governance for almost two decades, I still wasnt convinced that he had the aptitude to manage and handle an office as complex as the presidency. If you ask me now, I still wouldnt want him back in Malacanang now or ever.

When Erap was ousted in 2001 through EDSA Dos, I was elated. I thought, finally the middle class, the tax-paying class has risen in revolt against an incompetent leader. I was aghast to read in the papers that he had spent his presidential time partying and gambling with his midnight cabinet, that he had seduced a married woman during his term, and milked the poor in the countryside by collecting kickbacks from jueteng proceeds.

The middle-class succeeded in ousting him. I was hopeful when Gloria took over: here is an economist, educated, well-bred, and capable. I believed then that she could do a better job. Even if she was only seen at the moment she was sworn in and was not in sight days before that, I didnt think much of it. I guess its true: hindsight is 20/20.

In May 2004, I was working as a staff in the Philippine Senate. Right after the elections, I found myself poring over ERs (Election Returns), counterchecking the votes agianst the CoCs (Certificate of Canvass) and noted the discrepancies, and boy, was there a lot? It was the worst day of my life as a Filipino citizen as I personally witnessed the shameless act done by Gloria's adminsitration when she deliberately and conscientiously cheated the Filipinos of their rightful President. And yet, the worst was yet to come. When allegations of election cheating in Cebu and Mindanao came out, I wasnt surprised but I was shocked at the way Sen. Kiko Pangilinan and DOJ Secretary Raul Gonzalez noted the whole thing at the House of Representatives, televised and aired live to the Filipino people. Oh, accountability, where art thou?

I was sick to the core of my being at the blatant disregard of this government to our sovereign rights in choosing our leaders. They have trampled upon a valuable part of our democratic right and they have relentlessly, continuously done so with every overpriced project, with every peso they steal, for every cover up they commit, for every life lost needlessly, for each and every violation they have done against the taxpayers amongst us and against God.

My reaction to all these was Surrender. I got fed up and right about that time, I started to retreat to my apolitical self. I stopped reading the papers and I only watched the weekend news. I consciously ceased to participate in political discussions and forums. It was a tough choice knowing myself, but I persevered. Until the ZTE-NBN scandal broke out.

I didnt have to scrutinize every detail but I only needed 10 minutes of my life, watching Jun Lozada spill all in a press conference. Oh, this government is at it again, I thought.

But then it hit me.

Yes, they are at it again because people like me stopped caring, I chose to be and remain silent amid all these corruption noises, subliminally suggested by the admistration lackeys as people power fatigue. I have to admit I was afraid that when Gloria steps down, I dont really have an alternative leader. Someone who will put our welfare as citizens over and above her personal gain. Someone who is politically mature enough to respect our right to choose our leaders. Someone who will take accountability to heart and rememeber that crime does not pay, no matter who you are.

These were just one of my many concerns. Just as I know, a lot of people are thinking and sharing my sentiments. I realized finally that we do have an alternative. The constitution will provide for us, just as it provided us with Gloria when Erap became indisposed. We realize now that she didn't even come close to being a good president as she promised us when she took over the presidency. Let her not brag about what she has done for the economy because with the billions of dollars in remittances that are being sent by OFWs: the same group of people, by the way, who opted to work overseas and spend years away from their loved one because there are no decent-paying jobs to be had here; her economic policy has squat to do with it. Our economy will more or less run by itself, with the remittances that's being spent on goods, sales and services. Any Juan can sit there and we will exactly be where we are now, economy-wise.

But let us not give up. We Filipinos are a hopeful lot, let us all hope we find that gem of a president who will genuinely care for this country and its people, who will work hard to better our lives, and who will serve as a moral leader to each one of us.

At sixty-two years old, the Philippines is a young nation and as young nations go, we have a lot more to learn. We will meet more challenges, we will have worse presidents than the ones we have elected but eventually, we will learn. If we have to remove every sitting president before their term ends because they have abused the powers inherent to their position, we will do so. We need to send a message to every corrupt politician out there that they cannot get away with their crimes. Only when we have found that leader shall we rest in our crusade. Because at the end of the day, it is our children and their children's forever who will benefit from our quest. And what a legacy that would be!

Well, I think I have been silent long enough, I have been apathetic longer than I should be. It's time to make a stand, to be counted and join the growing clamor for Gloria's resignation for reasons too many to mention.

Because in the depths of my heart and of my nationalist consciousness, I know I deserve a better president.

WE ALL DO.