THE final State of the Union Address of US President Barack Obama seemed to have been overlooked as Americans got into lotto frenzy with the $1.6-billion Powerball jackpot draw on Jan. 13. According to the Multi-State Lottery Association, the winning tickets were sold in California, Florida and Tennessee.
On the same day, Obama took the podium in the US Congress with a shorter, yet thought-provoking speech with the introductory theme, “I want to focus on our future.”
He answered four questions: (1) How do we give everyone a fair shot at opportunity and security in this new economy?; (2) How do we make technology work for us, and not against us — especially when it comes to solving urgent challenges like climate change?; (3) How do we keep America safe and lead the world without becoming its policeman?; and (4) How can we make our politics reflect what’s best in us, and not what’s worst?
Obama narrated the impact of his administration on the continuing economic growth; in addressing the issues on energy and climate change; and in sustaining military might. He said that if threatened, “America will always act, alone if necessary, to protect our people and our allies; but on issues of global concern, we will mobilize the world to work with us, and make sure other countries pull their own weight.” That is a stern warning to terrorists while at the same time is a call for cooperation among nations.
It is the final question, though, that finds relevance to the Filipino nation: “How can we make our politics reflect what’s best in us, and not what’s worst?” For truth is, politics is killing the Philippines.
While Obama talks about his frustration with the Republican opposition that has stalled some of his programs, that is not the case in the Philippines. Filipino politicians do not have party loyalty; rather they are political chameleons opting to jump to the party-in-power to get better access to Malacañang, to ensure pork barrel allocation and to obtain campaign funds for the next election.
There are clans and families that consider politics as heirlooms that for some can best be protected by private armies and vote-buying.
The US president confided: “Our brand of democracy is hard. But I can promise that a year from now, when I no longer hold this office, I’ll be right there with you as a citizen — inspired by those voices of fairness and vision, of grit and good humor and kindness that have helped America travel so far.”
He stands on the declaration: “We the People,” that is, it is the concerned citizens that make democracy work, that build a nation, and that define a people.
The Filipino people must come to realize that they hold the destiny of the Philippines in their hands; that they ascertain the future of their children in their votes; and that they create the politics that run the nation.