A strong middle class is the solution

It is easy to see why a law outlawing political dynasties will be difficult, if not impossible, to pass. The law will be a curtailment of the right of every citizen to vote for any candidate of his/her choice, which is the essence of democracy.

Commission on Elections Chair Sixto Brillantes Jr. says that the only way political dynasties can be banned is by amendment of the Constitution through a public initiative, as Congress will not enact such a law because of conflict with the self-interest of most of its members.

But even if such a constitutional amendment is introduced, will it not conflict with the right to free choice? Or the right of any qualified citizen to run for public office?

Webster’s Dictionary defines “dynasty” as “1) sovereignty, lordship, dominion; 2) a race or succession of kings, of the same line or family; the continued lordship of a race of rulers.”  Princeton’s World’s Net has a more modern definition: “a sequence of powerful leaders in the same family.”

A dynasty is historically inherited political power through a bloodline, as in the case of kings and nobles during the feudal period. The French, English and Russian revolutions ended this heritage of power by cutting off the heads of their kings (Charles I of England in 1649, King Louis XVI of France in 1793, and Tsar Nicolas II of Russia in 1918).

Democracy abolished dynasties of inherited power and replaced it formally with the sovereignty of the ballot. The voter is “king.” His basic qualification is citizenship, not blood or property. But as one veteran Filipino politician has put it, in the Philippines, it is the “golden rule” that dictates the outcome of elections: “He who has the gold rules.” The 1969 election, in which President Ferdinand Marcos won reelection, was decided by “guns, gold and goons”—the three Gs. Marcos looted the national treasury to win reelection, bankrupting the government, seeding the social unrest that eventually deposed him.

The politician who famously provided this truism was Sergio Osmeña Jr., the presidential candidate who was defeated by Marcos. Sergio Jr. was himself a member of a “political dynasty” in Cebu, founded by his father, former President Sergio Osmeña Sr.  The Osmeña “dynasty,” which has reached its twilight years, is now replaced by another, that of the Garcias.

The source of a “political dynasty” is wealth, whether inherited or acquired, legally or illegally.  Without wealth, you cannot pay the goons or buy the guns to coerce the voters. Also, you cannot buy the votes. And more especially, you cannot afford the Comelec, which is needed for wholesale fraud, like “dagdag-bawas” (literally, adding to and subtracting from electoral returns).  The democracies of ancient Greece and Rome eventually collapsed when the government by merit, courage in the battlefield, education and wisdom gave way to government by oligarchy (wealth).

As young republics, their citizens composed mostly of farmers and artisans with more or less equal income, Greece and Rome were the powers in their regions. But empire made the state wealthy, with public works and armies being raised by stealthy individuals who made huge profits through government contracts and trade monopolies. An oligarchy of a few rich families seized governmental power. Lord Acton’s law took over: “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”  The termites of corruption gutted the foundations of the state, which inevitably collapsed.

The Philippines, without even becoming wealthy as a nation, has developed an oligarchy bred during colonial times. Its members reside splendidly in shining communities protected by high walls and private armies, and surrounded by hovels of emaciated peasants and workers eking out a bare existence—a feudal society in an age of modern metropolises, space satellites and computers. The peasants and workers are hungry, and their votes are in the market cheaply for those who can afford to buy public power. Power begets wealth and wealth begets power. It is a vicious cycle that is the root of the political dynasty, Philippine style.

The solution? Provide a livelihood with decent wages to all family heads of the class of workers and tillers.  Thus, you build a strong middle class—a majority class of voters who cannot be bought. The American Empire, like the Roman Empire and the Greek democracies, has declined because of the weakening of the middle class.  US President Barack Obama said he would rebuild it. In the Philippines, our job is to build it.

Manuel F. Almario is the spokesperson of the Movement for Truth in History. E-mail [email protected].