Celebrity politics

Welcoming and feting somebody bringing honor to the country is but proper. The problem, however, is we tend to exaggerate and go overboard in expressing our admiration and rendering our tribute.

Manny Pacquiao deserves our accolade for his outstanding exploits in the ring. He has indeed made us proud to be Filipinos at least in the field of sports. This is one of the rare instances when our country has acquired global fame for being the best rather than the worst. The perseverance and determination he has shown to rise out of abject poverty into unimaginable prosperity is indeed inspiring and worth emulating. His life undoubtedly proves that success is attainable through sheer discipline, hard work and an indomitable spirit; that even a poor bakery helper in a far-flung province can become a millionaire many times over not by pure luck but by "one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration". He really deserves to be acclaimed a "hero" and dubbed the "people’s champ".

But, it is already an "overkill" to be repeating and re-enacting this hero’s welcome and red carpet treatment everytime he goes to the boxing arena and wins the fight by mauling his opponents. The media hype, ticker tape or victory parade and Malacañang reception every time he returns home from abroad after "destroying" his opponent in the ring, is already too much. This kind of treatment is like telling the whole world that we have a dearth of heroes except in a field that even emphasizes too much violence and brutality. Many others who also brought honor to our country in more worthy endeavors should have been, but was not, feted with such exaggeration.

The Pacquiao mania once more brings into focus our wrong sense of values. At the start, Pacquiao looks like an authentic hero. However, because of the excessive recognition given to him especially by media, he has become more of a celebrity than a real hero. His fame is no longer largely due to his remarkable exploits and exemplary traits. It is more because of the media hype and publicity gimmick to promote the big business of boxing that thrives on the gory spectacle of two people trying to maim and knock each other out. This is the new kind of "hero" that media has created out of Pacquiao. This is the new "hero" idolized by our people. His popularity has become his own shield against any adverse reports concerning his personality such as his alleged profligacy and marital infidelity. Like all celebrities, people tend to overlook or even admire his more unwholesome exploits. Fame and fortune must really have gotten into his head that he is now even thinking of taking a big jump from the boxing ring to the halls of Congress.

Unknowingly or perhaps knowingly and willingly, Pacquiao has allowed himself to be dragged into politics Philippine style. The recent hero’s welcome accorded him after the San Antonio, Texas bout appears to be nothing but a cheap political stunt not only for Pacquiao himself but also for certain candidates trying to capitalize on his celebrity status. To be sure, Pacquiao’s latest bout is not as spectacular and bruising as to earn for him a "hero’s welcome" and red carpet treatment in Malacañang. There is nothing "heroic" in his last performance in the ring against an obviously weaker opponent. Apparently, the ticker tape parade was part of a campaign gimmick to gain a lot of media mileage and boost the mayoralty bid of Mayor Lito Atienza’s son who wants to succeed his father in another bid to establish political dynasty right in the capital city of Manila. If Atienza is a real friend and second father to Pacquiao, he should not have organized that "hero’s welcome" at the height of the election campaign. A "second father" would have advised Pacquiao to stick to boxing and leave politics to others with better qualifications than a powerful fist.

I am not belittling sports and movie celebrities who desire to serve in the government by entering the political arena. They have all the rights as Filipino citizens to run for public office. But it is also their duty to provide the Filipino people with real choices based on experience and qualifications for the position rather than mere popularity. I am sure that in seeking public office their main motivation is the strong belief that they have better chances of winning because of their celebrity status and not because of their superior ability to bring good governance to the people. They should be honest enough to tell the people that it is their popularity and name recall rather than their administrative or legislative ability that drove them to run for public office. It is stretching the imagination too far to think that those with excellent fistic or thespian abilities are better equipped to effectively legislate or perform the task of public administration. I dare say this at the risk of incurring the ire of their diehard fans because it is the truth.

In this country, all citizens, 18 years and above who can read and write, are entitled to vote at their place of residence for the last six months. Apparently, the big majority of these voters come from the C, D, and E sectors of our society who are enthralled by personalities they have often seen on TV, movies and newspapers especially sports and movie stars. Hence, when these personalities present themselves as candidates for public office, their instinctive reaction is "iboboto ko yan" without thinking anymore or considering whether these candidates are fit for the position or can really promote their welfare and interests. To these voters anyone lionized by media is "magaling" and their "idol". In addition, inside the polling booth during crunch time when they encounter hardship in simply filling up the ballots, the names that come to mind right away are of course their idols.

This is the unfortunate reality in our electoral process that has spawned celebrity politics. Like political dynasties, celebrity politics do not guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service. Like political dynasty, it is the main cause of bad governance and deterioration in the quality of public service. In the coming elections, lets vote for candidates not merely because of their popularity but mainly because of their capability to render public service.

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