Increase the number of college graduates, enhance infrastructure, improve ecnomic situation, lessen incidence of hunger, eradicate poverty, transparency, good governance...

I couldnt enumerate all the socio-political and ecnomic issues that are prevalent today. And I couldnt elaborate further how politicians seem to use all these crucial issues for their own advancement. For the past many years, our country has witnessed the transition of countries we thought couldnt overtake us, Vietnam, Thailand and I am not surprised with this saddening and disillusioning fact. Everyday we are bombarded with faces of politicians involved in a seemingly endless debate on a lot of issues only leaving these issues hanging. We are also not new to results of surveys stating that Philippines is one of the most corrupt countries, a country having the highest figure in terms of poverty incidence and people who have nothing to eat. 4 Million! That's a very staggering figure, a very alarming one.
But still what we get are all cynical promises, a promise of a better future, a promise for a better nation?

On May 10, 2010, the judgement of the Filipino people will once again be put into test. For once every 6 years, the Sovereign Filipino people have the power to alter the course of history, to swing the present course of events. But the question is who should the people vote?Who is the right choice?

Last weekend when i bought the newspaper, Businessworld, I came across an article. I couldnt remember the title but i could vividly remember the message of the article. Our country needs a servant leader not just an ordinary servant leader, but a leader who has a character of servitude, a passion to serve not the interests of the elite few but of the masses, an unwavering faith to do what is right and have love not for oneself but for the whole nation.

We dont need someone who are good at making promises. Neither do we need someone who has the best of qualifications or someone who has the highest intellect among all. We dont need someone who is charismatic. We need a servant leader. A leader who knows how to listen to the grievances of which the majority are the people who live under harsh conditions one could ever imagine. But A servant leader for whom? A leader serving the interests and fighting for the welfare of the Filipino people. What welfare and issues are at stake?

The right to have education, the right to equality in terms of opportunities, the right to attain justice, the right to have a good life and possess all the necessities and basic needs, the right to have a good government and effective leader, to name just a few.

What we want to see is a leader, who would fight for the welfare of the farmers, someone who would attend to the sufferings of the Filipino workers, someone who would educate people and not alienate them, a leader who can change the political landscape, someone who would fight for truth, honesty, equality, good and transparent governance.

Of course some would claim that these qualities are hard to look for in a politician. It is even deemed next to impossible. But if we wont set the standards, if we dont know what qualities a leader we are looking for should have, then we are just voting to merely replace the old leaders with the new ones. No change, same old, rotten system.

Though it is difficult to set the qualities a leader should posess, for as long as the people know what kind of leader they need to have then that's the only time the true essence of election will be realized.

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