IT looks like the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections are finally going to take place. Earlier this week, Interior and Local Government Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Martin Diño unequivocally declared “tuloy na tuloy na.” Although technically speaking, neither the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) nor the Commission on Elections (Comelec) can actually give that guarantee—the matter simply isn’t up to either institution to decide on—I expect that he has a better grasp of the political side of the question, so I’m going to take his word for it—the 2018 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections are on.
Interestingly, the most immediate beneficiaries of that announcement, as it turns out, are the barangays themselves. Almost on cue, the communities I pass through on my morning commute are looking a bit more bustling, with people in official-looking matching outfits sweeping streets or standing in the middle of the street, waving their arms around in what can only be described as a futile attempt at Jedi mind-tricking traffic away. I would give them an “A” for effort, if only I could forget their palpable absence when their cozy jobs weren’t on the line.
Which is why I’m particularly glad that the DILG’s announcement of the elections pushing through was accompanied by the announcement of its initiative to encourage voters to choose candidates who are “matino, mahusay, at maaasahan”—that is to say, upstanding, competent and reliable (on an interesting but possibly irrelevant note, of those three attributes, only maaasahan has a direct English translation; matino and mahusay have multiple English equivalents depending on the context). I don’t see anyone disagreeing with those general criteria.
The undersecretary devoted quite a bit of time explaining that the initiative wasn’t an attempt to dictate upon the voters who they should vote for, and I have to agree. This prescriptivist approach isn’t new or unique to the DILG. The difference, however, is that the DILG’s criteria should not be seen as mere suggestions for voters to consider, but as a warning to potential candidates to take a long, hard and honest look at themselves to see if they’re up to standard. As far as the former goes, the DILG really can’t do anything if the voters ignore the suggested criteria; but as to the candidates, when someone with power “suggests” that you be a certain way, it does carry the subtext that it may not be in your best interest to ignore the recommendation.
This is a subtle shift in the political dynamic that, to be honest, I didn’t really expect to see. But it is, to me, a welcome development in that it mirrors the Comelec’s own thinking when it tightened up enforcement of the rule on the submission of Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (Soce) beginning 2013. In enforcing the Soce rule, the Comelec relies heavily on the fact that the DILG has a measure of supervision and control over locally elected officials—including barangay officials—calling on it to flex its regulatory muscle by preventing the assumption of office of those who failed to turn in their Soces.
Following the same logical underpinnings of that Comelec strategy, the DILG now sends the signal that elected barangay officials who end up not meeting the standard of matino, mahusay at maaasahan might find themselves on the receiving end of sanctions. The prescription, in effect, reminds voters that their votes have consequence and urges them to think twice about the choices they make, and not be easily swayed by the pre-election blandishments of the candidates.