AT LEAST 50 newly elected congressmen from the Liberal Party have expressed interest to cross over to the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), according to Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez.
Alvarez, who is touted as the next speaker of the House of Representatives, added he was told by current Speaker Feliciano Belmonte—who leads the more than 100 Liberals in the current Congress—that he had given his political allies the freedom to join the predominant party once sessions open anew at the end of next month.
Then again it’s not as much freedom as it is convenience.
There used to be a word for those who abandon their current affiliations in favor of new ones: turncoats. These days, a more fashionable adjective has emerged: political resilience.
We cannot say though that we are surprised at all with this movement. It’s a fairly common spectacle in Philippine politics when a new administration assumes power. It is a sorry reminder that our so-called party system does not offer clear ideological delineations.
The multi-party system in the Philippines is just that, a venue for parties that hardly differentiate themselves from each other. The formula stays and only the names and faces change. It was the Liberals in 2010; today, the PDP-Laban. The next dominant party is anybody’s guess.
What hardly needs guessing, however, is the pattern it will all take in the next six years. In the Philippines, herd mentality is strong and everybody likes to go with the winner. This not only earns goodwill but has very real financial consequences in terms of access to funds for local projects even as the prime mandate is to craft laws and not build bridges in one’s town.
It’s all for unity and moving on, they may argue, an argument that those forming coalitions with the incoming administration’s party may invoke. That parties: The Nacionalista Party, Lakas CMD and others holding talks right now, are joining forces to advance the nation is sound politics, just as long as—and this may be too much to ask—the individual groups can find something to make them distinct and separate from all the others they are linking arms with.
Otherwise, it’s all a farce, and the public will not be fooled that they have had a change of heart when in fact they just want to save their skin and secure their political future.