Second Thoughts About Federalism as an Option in Eradicating Corruption in the Philippines
Posted on Thursday, 12 November 2015
Second
Thoughts about Federalism
as
an Option in Eradicating Corruption in the Philippines
By Apolinario Villalobos
A comment from a viewer on what I wrote
recently about corruption, made me have second thoughts about Federalism as the
remaining option to eradicate or somehow lessen the corruption in our country.
He simply said that since corruption is already deeply-rooted in our culture,
it will still be around even if the form of our government shall be changed to
Federal. He is right. Though I am a staunch advocate of Federalism, his comment
really shook me to think again.
It has been loudly expressed by the
different sectors of the Philippine society that the Philippine Congress and
Senate are the breeding grounds of corrupt officials. Elimination of the two,
for these observers, is the only option left to eradicate corruption in the
political system of the country. And, the only way to do it is to change the
Presidential system to Federal. I have now having second thoughts about that as
the ultimate solution.
If the Congress is eliminated, the peoples’
representatives will go back to their provinces. But that does not mean that
they will forget politics. They will definitely go back to the political arena
which has just been reduced into the size of a “region” – their home. Since they have the financial resources that
have been dishonestly earned, what will stop them from paying their way into a
new political venture? This scheme is just about the transfer of corruption
from one turf to another or from the national to regional or “state” level. The
corrupt lawmakers who will be nearer their home may even turn “their” state
into a family enterprise!
If the above-mentioned shall happen,
corruption shall have just been localized and compartmentalized, the better for
the political dynasties to operate. It is written in the pages of the
Philippine history that ever since the development of political system in the
Philippines, the political dynasties were also sprouting due to patronage.
Today such dynasties have become generally, well-entrenched in the different
levels of Philippine political hierarchy. In other words, nothing will be
transformed significantly, except the system, throughout which, the corrupt
life-giving element shall still be flowing.
This is just a personal and apprehensive
view. There will still be a complicated
process involved, if the Filipinos shall finally decide for a drastic change.
Also, the effort may not even reach the first base, at the rate things are
going as the Congress will definitely not pass a Bill that shall spell its
demise. The helplessness of the Filipinos seems to be just leaving to chance
the country’s fate after the 2016 election, which as they foresee, shall bring
forth another corruption with a new face.
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