To resign or not to resign, that is the question

Of late, I have come to thinking yet again that no matter how hard we try it is not what we want that will always happen. And yet we have to do the little things, we have to make decisions about our lives, we are kind to others but also unkind to too many.

Such acts assure us that we have free will, the capacity to carve our destiny. Indeed, freedom is the only thing worth fighting for and then…out of the blue… something does happen not because of our efforts but unexplained coincidences. A friend says this may be too philosophical but it has become my norm in life.

I will do little things…with my free will and leave the big picture to fate, to destiny. That was how the Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy struggled with reconciling free will and destiny, all wrapped up and intertwined in life.

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Who would have known that Mamasapano would happen? Who would have imagined that 44 members of the PNP special forces would be so brutally killed to make our aspirations for a better society closer to being fulfilled? Through Mamasapano, we learned a serious lesson in politics – how one clueless leader can destroy a country. Better a collective leadership of many minds than a mindless, arrogant leader who thinks he can do anything and everything.

The presidential system gave us this kind of leader that is why we must push for parliamentary federal government to bring in collective leadership and allow more intelligent and stronger individuals to be elected.

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Bayanko adviser Jose Alejandrino wrote “today we are a leaderless nation.” The cry for President Noynoy Aquino to resign grows louder. With his ineffective leadership, it seems the most reasonable way out. But then who will take over?

 There is really no one who can take over that will give us the good governance we need. Reformists face a dilemma: shall we make him resign with the risk that someone worse will take over?

“We do not think that those calling for the ouster of President Aquino have presented any real solution. They want a revolutionary government but do not say who will compose it. They have not offered credible leaders. Some want Noynoy to step down and under the constitutional succession would have VP Jojo Binay to succeed him. This is not acceptable to others.

The people are tired of old solutions and old faces. Bayanko said this would simply be trading one problem for another.

Others say the country should just sit out President Aquino and wait for the 2016 elections. But is this the solution? Won’t it lead to the election of an old face or an inexperienced one? Won’t we be repeating the same mistake that led to the election of Noynoy Aquino?

The lack of new faces is due to our presidential form of government. The high cost of running for public office has deterred many, particularly from the marginalized sectors of our society, from presenting themselves. The present system continues to be dominated by the oligarchy and political dynasties. What the present system has done is to perpetuate them in office.

This is why Bayanko has stuck to its position that the only way to break out of this vicious cycle is to change the system. A parliamentary federal system will enable new leaders to emerge. Such a change will no doubt meet with the fierce opposition of the old established political order accustomed to power and privileges. This is the real battle that we must fight and win.”

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Former President Fidel V. Ramos echoed the same concern. Are we experiencing a leadership bankruptcy through our presidential system? His answer to those who would say we must “move on” is – but where to?

“Move on kamo? Tuwid na daan kamo?” Ramos said. “The road to hell is straight.”

Ramos said protests should not just be about the Mamasapano incident only, but also other problems such as corruption.

“We should clean up society. Hindi lang Mamasapano. Pati yang DAP (Disbursement Acceleration Program) at PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund)!” he said, referring to the pork scandals that have been exposed in the last two years.”

MISCELLANY: I was at the well-attended book launch of former National Security Adviser Jose T. Almonte last Wednesday at Club Filipino. There was a beeline for him to autograph his book aptly entitled “Endless Journey,” a memoir written by Marites Danguilan Vitug after many interviews with the general, his friends and admirers – or anyone at all who had worked with him in his long career dedicated to national security and nation-building.

The book has been written thanks to the generosity of Kobe University of Japan and many others who contributed time and effort to its publication.

MISCELLANY: Instituto Cervantes de Manila with the Embassy of Spain and the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), presents “Female Filmmakers,” a special eight-film lineup that showcases the achievements of contemporary Spanish, Latin American and Filipino female filmmakers who have established themselves as an important force in their own countries’ screen culture. 

The film cycle will open on 7th of March, at 2 p.m., in Instituto Cervantes, with the Filipino horror movie Asin, directed by Aimee Apostol in 2012. The movie tells the story of Lila, a girl living in isolation with her mother in a remote town of Iloilo. Lila makes a dangerous journey across the mountains to buy salt from the nearest town. There, she unravels the dark horrible secret that doomed her to a life hidden from the world.

The same day, March 7, at 4 p.m., will be the turn of the Spanish film También la lluvia (Even the Rain), directed by Icíar Bollaín in 2010. The story focuses on Sebastián (Gael García Bernal) and Costa (Luis Tosar), who are making a movie about the discovery of America.

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From the Chinese Embassy comes an invitation to a special performance of the “Jilin Art Troupe: Happy Chinese New Year” in collaboration with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and  the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China, Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at 8 pm.