NEW POLITICS

One of the definition of the word "politics" that I can never forget from my college days is this college rendition:"Politics is the art of influencing others against the opposition of many."

Politics encompasses public governance including resource management,fund budgeting, service delivery and conflict management. Politics is a vehicle for bringing about socio- economic reforms, a means for change. It is a venue to select people who will serve. It is running government to help people run their lives. It is both a commitment and a form of service. Politics is "the greatest of all apostolates," said one Pope.

IS THERE TOO MUCH POLITICS?

Lydia N.Yu- Jose, chairperson of the Department of Political Science of the Ateneo de Manila University, in her introduction to the book Politics and Governance,Theory and Practice in the Philippine Context, said the expression "too much politics" is largely negative in connotation. The expression is also often use3d to describe deplorable and/ or ineffective human relations in arenas not directly connected with government or statesmanship.

Yu- Jose, says that "too much politics" is a way of saying that there is more than a tolerable amount of negotiating and compromise taking place, often in a non- transparent and seemingly arbitrary manner. The complaint of "too much politics" is not a protest against the nature of politics but a demand for the proper practice of politics,she argues.


ALTERNATIVE POLITICS AND LEADERS

Public governance must aim at establishing a free, democratic and peaceful society, responsible to the needs of the majority and based on gender equality.

Politicians should be sincere, trustworthy, God- fearing, just, humble and with a clear agenda and platform. A platform that is true and realistic. As electorates, we should a high- level of consciousness.

Seattle University professor Dr. Beverly A. Forbes enumerated the kind of leaders we need in the 21st century:

*We need moral leaders- leaders whose morality includes ethics, care, compassion, responsibility for others, justice, inter-dependence and honesty.

*We need leaders who see connections and patterns- people who see the relationship between issues- between the lack of meaning in our society and lack of opportunity for minorities and women; between the over-emphasis on status, powers and material wealth and the problem with drugs.

*We need leaders who model cooperation as well as competition- People who believe in win/ win situations as opposed to win/ lose situations.

*We need leaders who tackle issues- Who don't play with people's lives as they posture, define turf, engage in strategies to protect or enhance egos, who are more self-less and less self- serving.

*We need leaders who listen- And not just who are like them but to different voices- people on the margins, the women, the youth, the third sex, the differently- abled community.

*We need leaders who put people's lives above profit- Leaders who care as much about children as they are about cash; who are more concerned with an inner peace than outer- peace.

*We need leaders who can work with people- To get a job done and at the same time bring out the best in others.

*We need leaders who are emphatic- Who know what it is like to be without power, to be victims of the system, to be minority.

*We need leaders who don't separate the personal from the professional- Who know the importance of integrating body, mind, emotion and spirit. We need leaders who are expressive and emotional, who don't just analyze the pro's and con's of a situation or issue.

*We need leaders who are not tied to the status- quo. Who are not caught up in the hierarchy structure are those most able to stand up against it to change its course.

* We need leaders who shame power and are willing to empower others- Those who power that comes from respect in working with people as opposed to those who assume authority by merit of their position.


A REALISTIC VIEW OF POLITICS

Much of those enumerated are idealistic, that only God or the saints can qualify as leaders, as government officials. But, maybe we just need to change the attitude that politics is merely about power over others and an opportunity for self- interest( yes, the family and friends interests, too!).

We need to realize that being in government is not like business where we can recover financial losses during the campaign. Nor like a family where family members are part of the decision making- process. Or the oft repeated reasoning that 'it's our time now'. Definitely, everybody need to change.

The first change that ought to take place perhaps attitudinal. The way the politician and the people in general look at politics and political parties. Politicians in general look at politics as a way to gain power. Which is all right if the intention is to use that power to attain the good of the country and people.

Unfortunately, as it has happened in countless times, the politician may be adept at explaining that he seeking power for the benefit of the people but when he is in power, he alienates himself form the general good and concentrates his efforts at promoting his private good. The fact that he is a bastard is often over-looked. That is why people in general look at politicians with scorn and parties with derision.

Amid this popular perceptual problem with politicians and political parties is the fact that although there is an over- supply of pseudo politicians, there is a dearth of genuine parties in the country today. In this situation, people are relegated to the periphery of political decision- making.

No wonder, the masses of our people are reduced to mere spectators of the political game. In worse instances, are turned into mere pawns by the political players. And in the worst of scenarios, are the subject of willing mercantile transactions between ward dealers and the politicians.

Today, the dominant political personalities may have changed faces. But the structures of oppression remain. Poverty and all that it spawns- deprivation, ignorance, disease and marginalization of the masses- are still there.


The need for change remains a political dream. But there is a need to take action. That is the challenge. And the time to act is now. There is no time to lose. Start now. Believe it can be done. And it will be done.