Broadcaster Ben Tulfo is partly right when he said it is “not [their] fault” if the Senate of the 20th Congress will have him and his two younger brothers because “people are supposed to pick” the candidates they prefer.
Other candidates from political families have been saying the same thing. They offer themselves to the people, who ultimately decide their fate.
Many are dismayed to see the same old faces or new and younger ones but from the same political families declaring their intention to run in the May 2025 elections by filing their certificates of candidacy (CoCs) in the past week. We will see more of them until Tuesday, the last day for the filing of CoCs.
The administration’s Senate slate under “Alyansa Para Sa Bagong Pilipinas” has five reelectionists, including Maria Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos, Pilar Juliana “Pia” S. Cayetano, Manuel “Lito” M. Lapid, Francis N. Tolentino and Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.
Three are aspiring for a comeback: Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson, Vicente “Tito” C. Sotto 3rd, and Emmanuel “Manny” D. Pacquiao.
Four are either in the Marcos Cabinet or incumbent House members: Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr., Makati Mayor Mar-Len Abigail S. Binay, ACT-CIS Rep. Erwin T. Tulfo and House Deputy Speaker Camille A. Villar.
Sens. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go and Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa are aiming for a second six-year term, along with actor Philip Salvador, under the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino.
Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV are also eyeing a comeback in the Senate.
Based on recent opinion surveys, the race for the 12 Senate seats appears to be quite tight among the reelectionists and returnees, plus brothers Ben and Erwin Tulfo and outgoing LGU chiefs and House members.
For this reason, former senator Leila De Lima and lawyer Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno, who don’t have relatives in high office to count on, have chosen to try their luck for House seats through the party-list election.
While the surveys for preferential candidates indicate that voters choose popularity and accessibility (malalapitan, makakausap) over integrity, academic background and track record, there is still a ray of hope for positive changes in the outcome of the 2025 elections.
Remember the 2013 election results? Although familiar names still dominated the winners in the Senate race in that election, the voters rejected some candidates at the local level who were associated with well-entrenched political families.
Two out of three Remullas lost in Cavite, as well as two out of three Fuas in Siquijor. All six Gordons were defeated, as well as seven out of 10 members of the Jalosjos clan in the Zamboanga peninsula.
In Maguindanao, more than half of the 24 Ampatuans lost. Three out of four Villafuertes lost in Camarines Sur, with Leni Robredo winning a House seat against the wife of Luis Villafuerte Sr.
Not a few people I know have lost hope in the country’s balloting as a democratic exercise, given the results of the past elections. In fact, some have stopped casting their vote, and others do not even bother to register.
However, I take the view that the possibility of positive changes taking shape is lower if you get out of the system. I look back at the outcome of the 2013 election as a good start.
Although some of those who were rejected in that election managed to win in succeeding elections, it nevertheless showed that Filipino voters can put an end to dynastic politics. But those who are elected in place of candidates of dynastic families will have to work really hard to serve well and keep their post because the losers will definitely not take their defeat sitting down.
Because most voters reject being tagged as “bobotante” or “bayaran,” we should live by it. Show the candidates that we are not stupid or paid voters who cast our vote for those trying hard to dance, sing or tell jokes instead of spelling out their program of governance. Integrity, leadership quality and experience should come ahead of popularity and capacity to entertainment.
We have to disabuse the candidates of the notion that getting elected will enable them to help more people. Help in their context means dole-outs or assistance for emergencies such as hospitalization, burial, education, etcetera. There are appropriate government agencies for such public services.
The Senate and the House, for instance, are primarily for legislation. It is important that candidates know how to craft laws and, of course, know and follow the laws. Knowledge of the law is not inherited, so positions should also not be passed on from one family member to another.
Ultimately, the decision is in us voters. The election is a rare chance for us to be heard, so make our vote count by choosing the most suited candidate for each position at stake based on merit rather than popularity or dole-outs distributed during the campaign.
The views in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of VERA Files.
This column also appeared in The Manila Times.
