Let’s stop equating criticism to a lack of support
The Philippine election season is a time for entertaining and irritating drama, whether between candidates, their supporters, or both. Criticism is to be expected from all sides—but not everyone handles it well. Defensiveness is also a theme because, after all, we pick the aspirant whose values we resonate with the most.
Though it is true that election season inevitably brings hateful and sometimes pointless comments, not every negative feedback should be disregarded. Stifling all concerns from other sides would inevitably lead to idolizing politicians and placing them on pedestals, which had a hand in making the Philippine national elections become the circus it is today.
Still, some comments do cross the line. Those based on prejudice or narrow-mindedness (sexist, classist, revisionist remarks) should not be entertained. These are not criticism, only hate.
When candidates’ supporters do not tolerate criticism, it becomes ridiculous and borderline harmful. No candidate is perfect, and there will be disagreements between our values and theirs, no matter how promising they may seem.
For instance, some of Robredo’s supporters were surprised at some of her answers during the Presidential Interviews, particularly her aversion to legalizing divorce and same-sex marriage, and her openness to 100% foreign ownership of public services.
Not so long ago, groups also took to social media to urge Robredo to change her perspective on NTF-ELCAC, believing it should be abolished entirely.
Though it’s no crime for Robredo to have opposing beliefs, it is up to the Filipino people—especially her Kakampinks—to demand (and continue to demand) for better without sugarcoating. Robredo has shown that she is a politician who listens to the people, whether or not they support her.
However, it’s not only criticism that makes some Kakampinks prickly, but sometimes the mere presence of Leody de Guzman, another Presidential aspirant, is enough to set off tensions between the supporters of both parties.
Last December, de Guzman posted a photo of him and his family at the head of their decorated dinner table. This photo immediately drew ire from hundreds of netizens (several being Robredo supporters), accusing de Guzman of secretly having a well-off lifestyle that contradicts his socialist and leftist stances. These Twitter users zoned in on different items in the photo, from the dinner plates to their family’s pet corgi.
De Guzman’s supporters argued that his middle-class lifestyle is exactly what the labor leader wanted all Filipino workers to have for themselves and their families, reflected in his advocacies for decent pay and security.
Walden Bello, his running mate and Vice Presidential candidate, stated that middle-class prejudice makes people believe that workers should live in less than comfortable conditions.
As I said, no candidate is perfect, and their supporters certainly aren’t. Robredo is deemed as a new hope to her supporters, and yet some still hurl prejudiced comments to discredit de Guzman.
This is the same behavior that they despise from trolls and fake news outlets. Yes, it’s normal for people to want to defend their candidate of choice, but it crosses the line when something as harmless as a Christmas photo sparks anger.
Robredo isn’t the answer to all our problems, and we have to stop acting like it. She isn’t going to be the candidate that will heal the Philippines completely; only years and years of social action and good governance can do that, and even then, a lot of work has to be done.
Criticisms are powerful and must be welcomed (and more importantly, considered) both by the supporters and candidates themselves. We can’t settle for less when it comes to the needs of our country, after so many years of tyranny and incompetence.
We should still be able to judge and assess a candidate while supporting them. Any candidate, no matter how much we admire them, should be criticized like any other. It’s time we begin seeing politicians as not only our leaders, but as servants for the people.
The post <b> Let’s stop equating criticism to a lack of support </b> appeared first on WE THE PVBLIC.
Source: we the pvblic
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