True democracy is not in the ballots

The statement of Commission on Elections Chairman George Erwin Garcia, which places sole blame on Filipino voters for the “mess” we are in, oversimplifies the nation’s deeper crisis. It is a convenient half-truth that obscures the reality of elite dominance in Philippine politics.

From Claro M. Recto’s vilification in the mid-20th century to the Red-tagging of Makabayan candidates, the ruling class has ensured that electoral contests remain the playground of political dynasties rather than a genuine platform of democracy. Garcia’s remark, however well-intentioned, not only frames the issue as “poor choices” by the electorate, but it also absolves the benefactors of the system where dynasties reign from barangay to national levels, wielding patronage and money politics.

Recto himself was branded a “communist” and “traitor” by United States-backed politicians for his nationalist stance, his candidacy sabotaged by black propaganda. In recent elections, Makabayan candidates—particularly Bayan Muna—have faced the same fate. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) has relentlessly Red-tagged and demonized them, denying them equal footing and ensuring that progressives remain excluded from mainstream politics.

The truth is our electoral system is not a neutral instrument of the people’s will but a mechanism for legitimizing elite rule while pacifying dissent. To rely on elections alone is to perpetuate the cycle of dynastic power, corruption, and repression masquerading as democracy.

In the end, true democracy is not in the ballots, but in the people’s collective struggle.