A Little Breather
The recent national elections caught the people by surprise in the manner it blew by with the tallying of the votes. Most would agree that somehow there was an improvement, particularly with the efficiency factor. One would not dwell on how praise-worthy this consequential betterment is because of everybody’s knowledge that efficiency deserves a shiny medal only if the corresponding results possess the targeted quality. It would be worth pointing out that early critics of this year’s automated elections were proven wrong, with some actually happy and thankful for being wrong. This election’s process as a whole may not be considered outstanding, but it can be very well said that it has been satisfactory so far.
Unfortunately for most (indeed!) hardworking people of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), issues never cease. During the occasion, the Commission’s responsibility usually offers a no breather. From a talking koala bear to losing presidential candidates teaming up to form their local version of The Avengers, the circus show of an election that we already have has just added a whole new roster of freaks.
Every patriot has the duty to report any irregularities. The public has the right to know. However, the complainant’s motive must also be equally weighed, especially if the issues being raised are not material enough to change the outcome of the elections. This notwithstanding the lack of veracity and credibility of the witness, herein referred to as the koala.
This is like after sex wherein the female would beg for cuddling or sweet talk from the male before dozing off. Can’t just the public be thankful for enjoying the ride and reward the exhausted people of COMELEC a well deserved rest?
One has to admire COMELEC’s creativity to address these issues. Take Mr. Jimenez and Commissioner Larrazabal as an example. They even created their own twitter accounts to stretch their reach to the public (for the record, @jabjimenez’ tweets are wackier than @comm_larrazabal’s). With this, the next appointing authority should be open to manning up the COMELEC with young people possessing the zeal required by the job. Senior members of the Commission, particularly Commissioners Melo and Sarmiento, deserve all the respect and felicitations but this is one change worth pursuing.
Commissioner Sarmiento once mentioned in his philosophy class that the right of suffrage must be exercised for it begets the people’s liberty and freedom. Although the right of suffrage indirectly includes the right to question the results, the people must keep in mind that the lawmakers drafted this country’s electoral laws with the intention of promoting honest and free elections as a constitutional prerogative and not as a waveboard for bad hats to ride along in twisting the people’s choice.
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