Contemplating on Who to Vote

Today has been interesting. I started off with a good breakfast with my kids. Afterwards we headed for the TV room (where there is also an exercise mat originally intended to be the children’s play area) so I could do a 25-minute dance exercise routine following the Jaclyn Smith Beauty and Balance video. I wasn’t even fully warmed up yet when the phone rang and it was for me. It was 8 in the morning and a friend was talking to me about the current events (I was out of town for two and a half weeks). Furthermore, he was convincing me to vote for a certain candidate as this person was the supposed “conscience vote” of the thinking Filipino. While my friend’s rationale for promoting the cause of his chosen candidate was quite convincing, the irony of the whole thing to me was that my friend was not even a registered voter! He had long decided to forego his voting rights because he no longer believes in the system…that is the Philippine government. In fact he is one of those who are among thousands of Filipinos who are considering migration to a “first world country” as a better and more practical option for his family. This conversation set me off to a whole day of contemplation: Who is really a thinking Filipino? Who is the Filipino who loves this country? Who is voting according to conscience? Who is voting out of mere obligation? Who is voting out of ignorance or bandwagon mentality? I did not arrive at any answers but I really thought hard about who should be my presidential bet on May 10. This day ended for me with reading a few more articles on why I should vote and not vote for certain people. In the end, I found the article of Dr. Melba P. Maggay most enlightening (I’m copying that article onto this blog spot, too). My conclusion is Ako ay mananalangin at boboto sa Mayo 10. Ang hindi boboto walang karapatang magreklamo!