On God’s judgment day,” then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina told journalists Francesca Ambrogetti and Sergio Rubin, “we will count ourselves among those who ignored the gifts we were given and who did not use them productively, not only in terms of agriculture and raising cattle but in mining as well…”.
An interesting perspective was voiced out in 2010 by the man who in 2013 would become the Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. In light of the passionate but in my book misguided anti-mining sentiments of many of our local Roman Catholic Clergy, I suspect that many of them will have a lot of explaining to do to the Big Man on His Judgement Day.
‘Before you vote, just imagine God calling you to account for how you voted, okay?’
On a temporal level, today is Judgment Day, too, for the countless candidates in our Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections. Today’s electoral exercise brings to an end ten days of campaigning for positions occupied by incumbents who have benefited from one too many term extensions.
For those interested in trivia, there are a little over 42,000 barangays making up the length and breadth of our republic. Some barangays have small voting populations, like a little over 1,300 for Barangay 349 in Sta Cruz, Manila: others like Barangay Commonwealth in Quezon City have over 50,000. A predominantly Iglesia barangay, Commonwealth is a good place to run for office since the INC voters will never accept money in exchange for their votes!
The winners in today’s polls will have 24 months to serve their terms as the Supreme Court has made it clear that it has had enough of term extensions. While this abbreviates the time period in which the winners can serve (not their own interests, I hope) at the very least those who win today will be in position for the 2025 mid-term elections. Lucky, lucky, if you know what I mean.
Electing a barangay captain and his kagawads is no small, or laughing, matter. In community after community around the country, it could mean very substantial improvements in the barangay’s state of affairs — or no change over time. In mining communities with which I am familiar, a barangay captain can greatly influence how the social development and management program (SDMP) funds are spent — and these can amount to tens (if not hundreds) of millions of pesos per year! So, if the barangay has a development-oriented chief, well and good; but if they elect the tried-and-true trapo, then his barangay-mates should not complain if over the years it’s only his standard of living that improves. Mining firms, you see, have no control and very little influence over how the SDMP funds are spent since it’s the community’s money and so it’s the community (read: barangay officials) who decide.
So there. It’s Judgment Day today for the millions of aspiring politicians who filed their candidacies and are seeking our blessing.
Before you vote, just imagine God calling you to account for how you voted, okay?