Saturday, February 06, 2010

The Wait is Worth the Waste


People may consider my precious vote "wasted on a presidential who cannot win". And looking at our country, I am tempted to think the same - a mentality akin to gambling, of siding with the better odds.

In war, it may be related to "allying for survival's sake". In reality, it is plain cowardice - surrendering our own ideals to someone's else simply because we don't stand a chance to make it a reality. It simply shows that we have no guts, to willpower of our own to fight our own battles.

I was in high school when I first encountered Dick Gordon. I never had the privilege to meet him in person; we were being toured around the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority back in 1997 - twenty Senior Scouts vying for the honor of being called "Outstanding". Instead, I was the one astounded.

Being born and raised in Naga City, I am proud of my heritage - being a citizen of the most progressive city in the Bicol region (no offense to the people of Legaspi City and Iriga City). We would boast about our beloved mayor, Jesse Robredo, and about the accomplishments he did. This changed when I saw the story of SBMA through a short documentary film they presented, and as we went around the entire area.

For the first time, I realized what a city should and can be.

No offense, Sir Robredo - Naga City is awesome, and is still number one in my heart. But I fell in love with the vision of SBMA, of people disciplined and caring for their own community not out of obligation or fear, but simple passion and equality among themselves.

This is what I saw with my then-16-year-old eyes. And since then, I was praying that "sana" someday, the man behind it all would get a chance to become a president. It was a fanciful thought, though - maybe even childish. But that's why it's called a dream.

Through the years, however, I was dismayed how people know so little about him. I was saddened when Erap forcibly removed him from his post for a reason I can never comprehend nor justify. But I was relieved that the administration had enough brains to appoint him in the tourism industry. The details of his accomplishments in that department is well documented and described in numerous blogs, news articles, and everything else written and captured on video.

It came to me as a joyful surprise when I heard he actually announced his candidacy. Having Fernando as his running mate is a bonus, of course - Bayani's humility and practicality in that decision is another tale to tell.

People say that I am wasting my vote on him. How can that be? I believed in Gordon's leadership and vision for more than a decade; NOT voting for him after all these years is the most stupid thing I can do now. I will vote for him not because I am impressed with his platform or his eloquence, but because in my now-28-year-old eyes, he has kept his integrity, passion, dedication and vision for the past years.

I am not forcing you to vote for him. But I do challenge you to go beyond the circus shows on TV, radio, newspapers and surveys - and let the truth guide you to a wiser decision. In fact, stop listening to the debates, stop going to rallies and all for a change: spend time researching on everyone's backgrounds before they announced their candidacy.

I want to see our nation change for good. I want to see a transformation not only in the government and society, but most importantly in everyone's hearts. I want to believe again in hope for our nation - not empty promises, but a tangible though distant future where I can look back to today with pride and honor that I made the right choice.

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This statement is my own personal stand on the current elections. It does not reflect my church's stand on the matter, nor do I force them to believe the same. Just wanna be clear on that one.

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13 comments:

  1. Tearjerker... I've been hoping for him to run since 1996. When I first went to SBMA

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  2. I also have been waiting for him to run. Haven't been to SBMA, but I've been faithfully following the news ever since I can remember.

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  3. Thanks Sarah :) Glad to know someone feels the same about him. Let's both continue to hope and pray that he wins.

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  4. @Anonymous: Haha yeah, I'm quite glad that he finally is getting much attention. We need someone like him for our nation to change. I just hope more fellow Filipinos would come to realize that :)

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  5. my sisters and my brother will vote for Dick Gordon :)

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  6. Hi, I'm from Daet, Camarines Norte and I envy Naga City for having Jesse Robredo as your Mayor. He really did a great job transforming Naga City and creating job opportunities to its people.

    And I agree with you, Gordon is my President too. I don't care If he won't (but I hope he will) win this election but I believe in him and I have faith that he'll do great things for our country.

    I'll vote for Gordon-Bayani this May 2010 elections. Ito ang sinasabi nilang, Vote Wisely! :)

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  7. @sparrow: hehe cool! i wish i was also able to convince my siblings :)

    @amor: yea, we are blessed to have robredo in naga. but we will be even better when gordon becomes president - kasi buong bansa ang aayusin niya :)

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  8. very well said sir! permission to copy a part of thjis and post a link to your blog please?-cheery

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  9. @cheery: as long as i wont get arrested for it, no problem! :p

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  10. please delete this comment if you think it's stupid. seriously.
    his reason for running was that he thought no candidate was competent enough to become president which gives me the impression that he did not plan to run until he saw who was running. he's going to lose but i hope he runs next election and gather as much supporters as he can

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  11. @anonymous:well, i dont think your comment is stupid :) presumptuous, but not stupid. yes, his reason for deciding to enter the presidential race this time may be largely influenced by that reason, but i doubt that he entered the fight haphazardly or without any thought. there were already talks about him running for presidency during the last elections, but he opted to run for senate first - which was a wise choice. And him running now is likewise a wise choice (risky and unconventional, but so am I!)

    as for losing, we never know until all the ballots have been counted and the winner declared by comelec. so until then (or maybe even afterwards), i'm sticking with him :)

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  12. yuboobs, he he, kita mo nang anonymous blog to tig mention mo full name ko, ehe he he.. [so dai ko ma aaprove su saro mong comment]:D

    anyway, im replying here to acknowledge receipt of your comment sa blog ko. about bipo's baywatch story, ha ha ha, you bet! nalingawan ko na pati to maray napagirumdum mo. are you in naga?

    Gordon-Bayani pa rin ako.:D like you i've been waiting for years for these people to run. keep in touch!

    I'll be reading you blog rin.:)

    bobimbs

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  13. @bobimbs:
    glad to know some things never change after all these years - like our like-mindedness, LOLZ! (which as always is a compliment to both of us hahaha!!!)

    i'm in makati nowadays, scraping what i can to earn a decent living as a graphic artist (and hopefully someday as a full-fledged writer):p

    i'll try to get in touch when i'm in town next time. add me up in twitter & facebook (theradical96)

    thanks bro, and i'm proud that we're fighting on the same side here! :D

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