Some of these so-called abuses include an electoral process that does not reflect the people’s sovereign will due to systemic cheating; a population that casts its vote unthinkingly, leading to the election of incompetents to govern; legislators more concerned with their pork barrel instead of the common good; a weak judicial system; the presence of a much-too frivolous media; self-interested bureaucrats that have no concern for the public trust they have sworn to uphold; the general lack of respect for human rights and the rule of a law; and a public that is increasingly becoming apathetic and cynical towards our democracy. 

All of these lead to a system of governance that is a failure in many aspects as documented in many international studies. These include the World Bank measures of governance, Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, Amnesty International’s criticisms of heightened abuses against human rights, or the disturbing trend chronicled by the International Federation of Journalists as regards the freedom of the press and the murder of journalists.

The solution, some say, is a strongman or authoritarian leader, a Filipino Lee Kwan Yew or a Mahathir Mohammad, perhaps even a new Marcos, wielding an iron fist to set things right and get things done by eliminating “too much democracy”. Control the media, prevent protest actions against government, silence any dissent, and limit the freedoms of citizens in order to achieve economic development. These were the things that our neighbors in Asia have done, and these too we must adopt to arrest our downward slide.

Many scholars have also pointed to the historical experience of the Philippines as one of the reasons why this is happening. In fact, some claim that due to the almost 350 years of Spanish conquest and 50 years of American “tutelage”, these colonial experiences have “aborted” Philippine civilization and have created a “damaged culture”. This is turn has fostered the lack of love and pride in the country. Today, 1/3 of Filipinos surveyed said that they would leave the country if given the opportunity, and more than 8-million Filipinos are already abroad seeking greener pastures.  

Thus, we have the twin problems of lack of understanding of our democratic system, and the absence of love for the motherland. In the 20 years after the Marcos dictatorship was overthrown and democracy restored, we have not addressed squarely these issues, and now, they are coming back to haunt us.

Democratic gains may be reversed. One of the critical determinants in this is the failure of democracies to consolidate and deliver economic and social development – the so-called “democratic deficit”. More importantly, it is when people fail to understand the true responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy that the foundations of democratic governance are eroded. And this is happening now in the Philippines. There is a sense that Philippine democracy is back-sliding, that many of the actions taken by the present government are detrimental to the consolidation of democracy: from the assault on constitutional bodies and check and balance mechanisms, to corruption, to the sheer impunity demonstrated by the state apparatus against dissenters. Yet people remain unconcerned, and are focused on their day-to-day survival.