The Upcoming Philippine Elections

by�Melissa Luce-Borja

The Upcoming Philippine Midterm Elections

and the Japanese Concept of Wa ( 和 )

May kaaway ka na naman sa Facebook.

Ah, alam mo na, eleksyon na naman. Hindi maiwasan makipagdebate.

Minsan di ko na ma-take ang pagka-troll nya.

Block mo na lang bes.

Typical chat message between Pinoys these days. Ang mga wall posts, tadtad ng hashtags at emojis. Walang nagpapatalo. Pero hanggang saan ba talaga ang tapang nating mga Filipino? Hangang social media na lang ba? Ano pa ba ang magagawa natin para baguhin ang kalagayan ng ating bansa sa panahong ito. May silbi pa ba ang pag-iingay, mapa-social media man o sa kalye?

It’s a month to go before the Philippine midterm elections on May 13, 2019. A total of 134 party-list groups are vying for 59 seats in the House of Representatives and a total of 62 candidates for 12 Senate seats with 7 reelectionists while 7 are seeking a comeback. This will be my third time to vote in Tokyo via Overseas Absentee Voting, the previous ones were in 2013 and 2016.

When I first exercised my right to vote in the 1998 Presidential elections, I was so excited. I studied my choices very well. When the results came, I was disappointed. Feeling ko nasayang ang boto ko. But 21 years later, almost after every election, I still feel the same way. Walang pagbabago. The Filipino electorate would time and again vote for the same corrupt and traditional politicians.

When we moved to Tokyo in 2012, a national election was about to be held in December (and coincidentally, local elections this year will be held on April 7 and 21). Since then, I began to observe the ways in which our political culture

can be compared with the Japanese way. Baka sakaling may matutunan tayo.

As a student of Nihonggo, I came across the word WA (�) or “group harmony’. My sensei’s favorite word. I learned that this WA is one of the most fundamental concept of Japan's moral, social and political system. The WA puts a strong emphasis on social harmony, to rise above one’s personal feelings for the good of society. It evolved out of Japan's agricultural history when cooperation between farmers was essential in order to maintain the irrigation systems necessary to grow rice and other crops. The community had to work together to survive. Prince Shotoku Taishi in A.D. 604 even incorporated WA in Japan’s first constitution. In baseball, this WA is practiced by performing a sacrifice bunt in order to move another runner closer to scoring, allow a runner on base to advance to another base. In politics, this WA is manifested by the Japanese by being more party-oriented than candidate oriented. Policies over personalities. Even as online campaigning was allowed in 2013 elections, the Japanese people rarely obtained or engaged with the news on social media. Fake news and other online election methods were less effective with the Japanese because they deemed it offensive to openly express dislike against a person or policy. They’d rather keep their opinions to themselves

than disrupt group harmony.

I can’t help but compare this concept of WA with the Filipino practice of “bayanihan” which refers to our spirit of communal cooperation and unity. It is derived from the word, “bayan” which means town or community and the word “bayani” or hero. Filipino synonyms for bayanihan can be “tulungan” or “damayan.” We would often see the bayanihan spirit demonstrated when calamities strike. Pinoys from around the world would really go out of their way to extend help for their kababayans in need. I realized, however, that while the WA pervades the Japanese way of life, with our bayanihan, need is the operative word. The bayanihan spirit ignites only when there is a need. If the Japanese can practice this WA to every facet of their lives, why can’t we extend bayanihan to the other aspect of Filipino life as well? And we can start that with this coming midterm elections.

A recent survey reveals that one in every four Filipinos want a candidate “who will not be corrupt”. The other top traits that came out were: "helps or has concern for the poor" (22%), "has good personal characteristics" (21%), trustworthy (21%), and "has concern or is helpful to those in need" (20%). Base sa resultang ito, bakit paulit ulit pa ding nahahalal sa posisyon ang mga korap at traditional na politiko? Gusto pala natin ng maayos na pamamahala, bakit hindi tayo magtulungan na maihalal ang taong karapat-dapat? Ngayon tayo magbayanihan. May panahon pa.

As an electorate, we have power in our hands. We have the power to transform our

country by voting candidates that represent the true Filipino ideals and values—Mapagkakatiwalaan, Matulungin, May Malasakit, Makatao at Makakalikasan. Kilalanin natin ang ating mga kandidato.

If we just practice bayanihan this elections, we Filipinos can

also harness the power of the WA like the Japanese even as they play baseball. We can all give that sacrificial bunt so that the rest of the country can advance base. Sana yung talas natin sa social media, dalhin natin sa balota. Isantabi muna natin ang ating mga pansariling adhikain. Bayan muna bago ang sarili.