Beaten black and blue: The need for integrity in electing leaders
Where is this country going? We have just been crushed to impoverishment with trillions of pesos stolen by our leaders in high places. And now, we have a battle royale for the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, who will eventually escape the noose and disappoint many. Not only are there not enough numbers to successfully pursue the truth in the Senate, but Congress as a whole has forgotten its constitutional mandate as the nation’s purse, and we are critically on a downward slope in gross domestic product (GDP).
The Philippine Statistics Authority has reported that the Philippine GDP posted a year-on-year growth of 3.0 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, which brought the 2025 full-year GDP growth to 4.4 percent. From a lofty 6-7 percent, it is gradually predicted to be lower than 4 percent or worse in 2026. Must the country of 117 million bear all this, and must Congress not lose sleep over it?
Is integrity now negotiable for our leaders, even in the highest positions in the land? It is disturbing to hear that the VP will back all means to stop the impeachment proceedings in their tracks. She has been quoted as warning all and sundry, banks—Anti-Money Laundering Act, Department of Justice, and the Ombudsman—against poking into P6.7 billion transactions allegedly in her and her family’s various bank accounts, and assailing the bank transactions as malicious concoctions.
She has a significant following in Mindanao, as shown in the latest Octa survey, which is what gives her the political leverage. If she has unsullied integrity and can rebut these accusations during the impeachment trial, she can reassure the many who still believe in her that their trust is not misplaced. So, what is there to fear with the impeachment accusations versus the truth that she claims to hold, and can explain them all away? Doesn’t personal integrity mean a lot for one who hopes to lead the country?
One former president I recall under the two major party system of the Nacionalista and Liberal parties, before the party list era, who had unsullied personal integrity was Ramon Magsaysay, who opened Malacañang for the first time to the public. Small and ordinary things meant a lot to him if they reflected on his personal integrity. He reportedly had instructions to the kitchen staff to bill him personally for food served to his visiting family members.
Unfortunately, he did not serve longer than we would have wanted to because he perished in his last year in office when his plane crashed.
Former President Diosdado Macapagal reportedly was driven in an old jalopy during his tenure at the Palace. Known as the poor boy from Lubao, he tolerated no fraud under his watch, although there were accusations against the people around him, including his family members.
We can also recall other outstanding public servants leaving office with their personal integrity intact. Former Senate President Jovito Salonga, a preacher’s son from Pasig, who taught Sunday school in his local church. The good senator some years ago died in a local hospital. We were shocked to hear when people very close to him appealed to us in a church event to pass the hat around for him, for some P200,000, to pay for unpaid hospital bills.
Unless, we, as guardians of our votes use our God-given instrument for change and make the yardstick of personal integrity a must for electing our leaders, we will be recklessly losing what is left of our future.
MARVEL K. TAN, CPA.,
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