Dynasties galore

For the 2013 elections the phenomenon of the political dynasty has once again reared its ugly head, this time more vicious than before. In the Senate we have the Estradas with Senator Jinggoy and candidate JV Ejercito, Cayetanos with Senator Pia and reelectionist Senator Alan Peter and Enriles with Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and son Jack.

In Cebu, we have the Duranos in the 5th  district and  lest we forget, there are  five Garcia candidates with governor Gwen running for the 3rd district congressional seat,  her brother Pablo John for governor, father Pablo for congressman in the 2nd district, brothes Nelson for mayor of Dumanjug and another brother, Marlon, for mayor of Barili town.  Gwen’s son-in-law Duke Frasco is running  fo reelection as mayor of Liloan town.

What’s  wrong with political dynasties?  For one, the  1987 Constitution prohibits  political dynasties except that Congress has failed to pass a law to give  life to the Charter’s provision. The prohibition is meant to prevent a few families from  dominating politics thus driving away qualified would-be politicians.  But many politicians say its unavoidable  because political families submit themselves to elections and are chosen  by the people.

Lest they forget, because their families are already well-known, they have the great advantage of winning in the election. The elected family member  has served the public thus making it easy for the next family member to win.

The Constitution supposedly guarantees equal opportunities to serve the public but with the present practice  this assurance is  thrown out the window.  The Catholic Church has also spoken against political dynasties so I am hoping that politicians  heed the call, although this is  very difficult to follow.

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I don’t  know what drove Wakee Salud to  run for mayor of Cordova town when  the lower court already declared that he is not a resident there.

One of the basic  requirements to run for public office is that the candidate should be a resident of the place that he intends to serve.  Salud was refused registration because it was proven that he does not actually live in Cordova.

Adding to the controversy is the photo  of Cebu City Election Officer Marchel Sarno having lunch with  Salud.

Sarno defended himself by saying that Salud did not gain any advantage in their meeting because he is assigned in Cebu City and has nothing to do with the town of Cordova.

But Comelec officials being part of an independent body should avoid  controversy over their neutrality and its officials should be circumspect in their actions. Sarno should have been more prudent  and avoided  giving advice to political candidates.

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The anti-cybercrime law has become very controversial  as  many citizens see it as violation of the freedom of expression. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter are new venues  to express their views on local and national issues.  The new law seeks to regulate the use of  social networks  by applying a heavier penalty for online libel compared to libel in traditional media like newspapers, an offense journalists would like to see decriminalized.

The anti-cybercrime law has caused a chilling effect on online users. There are serious moves to have the law amended  to correct some infirmities and even the senators who supported and passed the law are entertaining the possibility of amending it.

What happened when the law was still a bill and being deliberated on in both houses of Congress?  Did the members of Congress pass the law without scrutiny or performing their duty for which they are paid by the people?