There is a certain je ne sais quoi having taken part in the monumentally historical 2022 Philippine national elections. For many Gen Z novice voters like me, it all felt overwhelming yet anticlimactic; the promising Pink Movement and grassroots initiatives, the massive disinformation propaganda, and unfortunately, the rise of another Marcos back into power. Three years in and an upcoming midterm elections later, I cannot help but wonder: Where did we go wrong?
And more importantly, are we bound to make the same mistakes again?
The good, the bad, and the horrendous
It is instrumental to establish that even back in the filing of candidacy, people have been pointing out that Robredo’s late announcement of her bid for presidency set the opposition wing far back. Despite that, however, a lot of people found hope amid the sea of disgusting traditional politics—with her presence, people clung to a future where good governance can be experienced by the Filipino people.
With this, a widespread movement sprung: a campaign calling for good governance hoping to reverberate the same call across various sectors. Pink rallies everywhere, celebrities endorsing her and her slate, election posters on houses, and mural paintings on public spaces. It felt like such a transformative phenomenon that everybody witnessed. Or is it really everybody?
What some people failed to realize is aside from the external propaganda and disinformation, growing tensions in the larger Left spectrum became increasingly visible too—counterintuitive arguments on who campaigns better, or who has a larger mass base, or who has more appropriate ideologies.
Radical left-wing supporters advocating for nationally democratic principles of governance became critical of the Pink Movement’s true intentions; conversely, liberals advocating and becoming frontrunners in said movement were dismissive of the criticism hurled at them, which exposed elitism within their ranks.
Slowly, the opposition became its own detached and disillusioned bubble, which was the reason the broadest opposition faced its eventual demise, and the eventual reinstatement of a dictator’s son and a strongman’s daughter into the highest posts.
Election season again—now what?
Cut to 2025, and we’re faced with the same dilemma. Traditional politicians taking over election polls, grassroots initiatives for leading opposition leaders exerting efforts slowly, and frankly, still a disengaged and divided opposition. We’re stuck with recurring promises from the same trapos advocating for a “better” Philippines, and on another side, we find the broadest Left on radio silence. With this, I can’t help but wonder: when will we realize that there are much bigger battles to face, and longer bridges to cross over?
There will never be a one-size-fits-all electoral slate whose governance is ideal, but to disregard the power inherently present in a shared goal of standing against what the Marcoses and the Dutertes represent is a disservice to democracy. An effective opposition alliance is the most realistic route we can take if we want an incompetent government out of the way. Heck, we were able to do it during the Marcos dictatorship, through oppositionists like the late Aquino and Laurel, who joined forces to lobby the broadest opposition alliance.
I challenge opposition leaders to hear each other, genuinely take the time to form agreeable stances, and compromise certain aspects of their political ideologies to ensure cronies and loyalists don’t get elected again into power.
And if there’s a bigger challenge, believe me when I say this is the most important one yet: listen, listen, listen to the people.