This is the grand and serene beauty of the Lake Lanao of Marawi City.

Maranaw Dirty Election 2007

These two videos tell us more about what kind of election we have in Lanao del Sur. It seem that we live in an era of middle ages. We have to show and see these. Comments are welcome.

POLITICS , PUBLIC RELATIONS AND PROMISES

By Samira Gutoc (01-April-2007) source is from http://www.maranao.com

Campaign speeches are now hitting the airwaves and aired in public functions too. Here in Lanao, in weddings where the elites and their angkan converge, politicians maximize their presence and make sure they are heard during the wedding proper. Maranao politics is one of the most colorful – add a 4th to the criteria of guns, goons and gold and you get another element to win – the girls or the women who are the most effective but low-key campaigners of their husband or their boss or whatever their relationship may be. The cost of vote-buying here is appalling – in one suspected town where drug-money flows, mayoralty candidates are supposedly courting voters for at least 250 US dollars per head.

Beside me at the Mamainte-Lucman wedding at Marawi Resort Hotel was MNLF Bangsa Bai and former assemblyman Zenaida Bubong. I ask her if MNLF Chairman Nur Misuari is serious about running for governor of Sulu, where politics is also pre-conditioned and the poor candidate without chance. She confirms Nur did file for candidacy but suspects this is just one of Malacanang’s patronage programs (to appease his followers).

We hear speeches from the candidates or their closest of kin who campaigned for them. Bubong rolls her eyes over the rewind of projections, public relations and promises made by the candidates who had a heyday last Wednesday and Thursday, stopping traffic to parade to the COMELEC office to file their candidacy. Here in the streamer city of the South, the trees are pinned overwhelmingly with smiling faces and names of party-list, senatoriables and consuming more space - the local candidates. In one speech in the wedding, it was refreshing to hear one gubernatorial candidate cite all the names of his closest rivals rather than attack them, as is the usual scenario. But expect a heated exchange between the closest of rivals to begin once the numbers in the surveys roll in. After all, it is a close fight in Lanao del Sur, thus the free zone declaration by Malacanang which means it is hands-off in endorsing just ONE CANDIDATE.

Each gubernatorial candidate here can claim bailiwicks, while having a loyal constituency and machinery to back them . There’s the incumbent governor – Aleem Bashier Manalao whose claim to fame is his charisma as a preacher and cult of women religious followers; Congressman Benasing Macarambon, a former MNLF commander and President’s closest ally here for standing by her in the impeachment trial; Marawi Mayor Omar Solitario Ali, another former MNLF commander, who aggressively gave the city a road system face-lift; and Engr. Mamintal “Bombit” Adiong, son of the former governor, who reportedly has more than 50 % of the votes of Lanao’s 39 mayors during a LAKAS-NUCD meeting in Davao City . May the best man win.

But please oh please, without the COMELEC under-the-table hanky panky, special operations coming in Marawi to make magic in favor of senatorial or party-list candidates, election harassments and killings. Just last month, a brother of a mayoralty candidate, who was vying against his brother was shot allegedly by followers of the brother. In this case, blood is no longer thicker than water. Power is. Bloody dangerous.

The good news is, a vigilant force is striving to drive away the criteria of 4 g’s to another g – good governance . On TV, while obvious politically-funded programs are aired, the discourse is about what is good governance and what the candidate can offer. It was great to see the internal revenue allotment (IRA) being discussed. In a dysfunctional society like this which has no media, public discussion and transparency thus silencing any form of dissent, the space for patronage politics is widened because political families can no longer claim to control the ira alone.

The majority poor have a unique opportunity to say no to vote-buying. Refuse that envelope distributed in kandori masquerading as good-will money. Refuse that envelope in the precinct. Hello, merong kapalit yon noh. What’s 300 pesos or 13,500 in exchange for paralysis of services during a full 3-year term of a mayor or governor ?

How do we combat corruption? The women beside me in the wedding had a strong suggestion – remove the ira., appoint not elect officials . It’s good we are speaking about this at last, without fear of reprisal or threat of harrassment. I hope these voices become louder so that we see a different future constructed ahead of us.

FEW GOOD MEN

By Sunny Rasheed Lucman Pacasum (10-June-2006)

(This is derived from http://www.maranao.com)

Throughout history, the world has been through many experiences during which the word and the sword were used. History never forgets those who stood by people to realise their dream of peaceful co-existence, freedom and equality. In turn it will not forget those who suppressed minorities and abused their political,social and economic rights. History books carried the names of many leaders who played major roles in their peoples' lives.

However, today most of us Moros lament the fact that there are no congressmen and senators representing us who stand out in the congressional debates on major current events. It was so different during the time of Sen. Alauya Alonto, Sen. Domocao Alonto, Sen. Salipada Pendatun and Cong. Rashid Lucman.They were stuff of legend, spoken about with awe, men who were fearless in ways that added a whole new dimension to the word. They opposed every program that smelled of marcos dictatorship. The only display of brilliance we could pick out from the present crop of legislators was during the war against terror of Cong. Jun Macarambon, the shut up incident of Cong. Digs Dilangalen and the impeachment vote of Congressman Mujiv Hattaman. I can only hope neither of them abandon the capacity for idealism that goes with their obvious gift of articulation. But nothing noteworthy to mention followed afterwards.

If there is one institution in this country today that best shows the extent of degeneration of our political system, it’s the house of Representatives. It’s the one institution that manifests how so entrenched political patronage and elitist politics in this country are. For so long an institution dominated by self serving political leaders, it does everything right or wrong to ensure that their political and economic survival is assured. It only shows that in this country the only thing more volatile than weather is principle.

If you analyze the function of the Bangsamoro who is positioned in government, he is never enabled to really take a firm stand. He would open his mouth only to the degree that the political atmosphere will allow him to do so. In my opinion a mature political action is the type of action that enables the Bangsamoro to see the fruits that they should be receiving from the politicians and thereby determine whether or not the politicians are really fulfilling his function. And if he is not, then we should set up the mechanism to remove him from the position by whatever means necessary. There’s only one way to put a politician out in conventionally - and that is to vote him out.

How could this happen to us? I can go on and bitterly blame the government, but that would be a futile exercise. Instead I would like to enjoin Muslim officials and policy makers and everyone on the Bangsamoro payroll to please, please take a look around you. It wouldn’t hurt to have some concern for your constituents and their living conditions. So to our Moro leaders and to all the honorable Muslims of the land, you who are our legitimate representatives, who were voted into office by the Bangsamoro people. Though few in numbers, you remain our only protectors against an oppressive government. As others have been corrupted with bribes and promises of bribes, may you stand as firm and as defiant as our Mujahideen brothers. The challenge before you is not showing the numbers, it is righting wrongs. The challenge before you is not closing ranks, it is opening eyes. It is better to lose fighting the good fight than to win peddling the bad cause.

I always have the faith in the securities of our tomorrow’s hope that the days of our children will be better than our own. But the Bangsamoro is losing that faith; now majority of our people believe that the next 3 years will be worse than the past 3 years. I believe the time to act is now. These are the times that shape the character of a person.

Today we have the opportunities to create future leaders. Positive change must be permanent not cosmetic.

Our situation cannot be changed overnight. It needs an over-all change not only in our political structures but more importantly in our ways of thinking—that is our sense of awareness. If you will look at it clearly, the greatest enemy of the Bangsamoro is not our leaders although they have much to answer for where we are situated now, but in all honesty, our greatest enemy is ourselves. The truth is, no one is clean and no one is with out responsibility. Not me, not you and not our politicians. Each and everyone of us should do his part.

We keep on blaming our political leaders for the mess we are in. We keep on demanding good governance from them but we have not demanded anything from ourselves so Muslim Mindanao wouldn’t remain impoverished. Let us try to change our traditional way of thinking and our negative attitudes toward life.

My point is before we start looking for heroes let us look for our personal responsibility from within ourselves. Before we criticize our fellow Moros and politicians, we should look at ourselves; because even if we are able to completely change all the people in the government—from the President down to the Barangay level, without our involvement to change their consciousness, we will still go back to the same predicament in no time. The solution to this problem is to impart to every bangsamoro religious education so that they do not yield to any malignant influence.

It is the failure of the government's school system that is greatly distressing. We must attempt to educate them in their own atmosphere and in the scene of their own activities, because in such surroundings the best efforts on the part of the teacher are in vain. As soon as our youth leave school they will mingle with company of their own sort which nullified the school influence altogether. The only solution to this problem is separating them from their social environment, only for a period of time, And gathered together in mosques or religious institutions away from bad spheres of influence. Thus detached from their wordly and material atmosphere, they would be imparted education by counsel and guidance in the company of religious people.Voting wisely is merely standing your ground. Whatever happens to the elections, you win by the very act of following your conscience.

I honestly don’t know what the future will really bring us. But I am hoping that if we continue dreaming for a brighter tomorrow for Muslim Mindanao and if we keep on believing that there is still hope for the Bangsamoro, then someday Inshallah we might just see that dreams really do come true...WASSALAM!

The End of An Era

(This blog comes from the http://aratawata.blogspot.com)

Perhaps because of the chaos and presence of newspaper reporters and foreign monitors in May, 2007 election, Pilandok did not notice the passing of an important era in Ranao politics.

The era of Political Ulama is now history. It’s gone the way of the dinosaurs and hopefully, it will remain politically dead until the return of Nabi-u-Allah Isah (Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him).

Alhamdulillah! That is what a practicing Muslim would say when good things happen. The word can be roughly translated to mean, “Thanks be to God”.

No one can tell as yet how much damage Political Ulama has done to Islam as a religion. But one thing is for sure: Political Ulama has ruined the role of the Islamic religious establishment as a positive contributor to the social and political development of our society. The gross, and sometimes comical, misconduct of the so-called Islamic leaders have not only lessened the relevance of the Islamic institutions but has made a mockery of the whole religion in the eyes of the public.

Thankfully, Islam is a religion with strong and uncompromising foundation based on truth, practicality and moderation. Though these characteristics have been hardly displayed by both politicians and ordinary Muslims, they are the undeniable allure of the Islamic way of life. Even with all of the bad press that Islam and Muslims are getting, it is the fastest growing religion in the world. Ironically, many of the new Muslims are from the educated population of the Western hemisphere. So while “born” Muslims are destroying the name of Islam in the East, Westerners are discovering the beauty and truth of this faith. The “war on terror”, which many people says, is a war on Islam, has made people read and find the real Islam.
I suppose this predicament could be explained by Muslims being uneducated about Islam. The mark of a society can be determined by the level of sophistication exhibited by its scholars and leaders. How can we expect ordinary Pilandok to know and practice Islam, if the Muslim leaders themselves do not seem to either know or care, nor practice Islam in their lives? The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was placed first out of 100 on a list of most influential people in history of mankind. It was because he was not only a religious leader but a statesman as well. Like Spider Man said, “With great power comes great responsibility.” In Islam, to be a leader is to assume an enormous responsibility of following the examples and teachings of the Prophet. And a big chunk of that is dealing honestly with yourself and with people around you. Could it be that many of these ulama were absent the day this lesson was taught?

The rise of Political Ulama started in the late 1980s when the Marawi City mayoral race was won by an ulama. In those times of innocence, Pilandok was happy and believed in the ulama. The ulama were so different from traditional politicians with their training in Islamic jurisprudence and theology in some of the world’s best Islamic institutions; the public’s expectations were exceedingly high. People thought that the ulama would follow the examples of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and rule with the uncompromising integrity like that of the Caliph Omar. Arata Wata remember half-way through that Mayor’s incumbency, there was a people power movement to save him from his legal troubles and people from all walks of life contributed money for his legal expenses.

But as years passed it became painfully obvious that the line that once separated traditional politicians from Political Ulama was vanishing into thin air. Leaving Pilandok to wonder if he had only conjured up the distinction when he realized that Political Ulama were just as corrupt and in some cases, were worse than the traditional politicians. Their ignorance of western democratic processes could have been one of culprits, not surprising having not been exposed to this concept since the countries they spent most of their adult lives obtaining Islamic education didn’t practice democracy.

The last “Caliph” could have done better because he assumed his office in a clean and honest way: the incumbent died. He did not spend tons of money to buy people’s vote when he run for his original position so he had no “investment” to recover. He could have salvaged whatever is left of Pilandok’s respect for the ulama, help restore social morality and made history for his leadership. Sadly, he lost sight on the bigger picture and became just another politician.

You can cast your fishing net in Lake Lanao and ask your Pilandok “Catch of the Day” and he will tell you what a disappointment the ulama has been. It is not difficult to understand why Pilandok has stopped listening to the ulama a long time ago. The only advice that the ulama are all very consistent and insistent with, is asking wives to let their husbands marry three more times.

In summary, the only lasting legacy of the Political Ulama is the proclamation of Marawi as the only Islamic City in the Philippines but the more appropriate title is “Slum-ic City”. Yes, it’s not an exhaggeration. The city is the dirtiest in the country. It seems like dirty politics have contaminated the physical environment as well.

So can the Political Ulama redeem themselves? Politically, I don’t think they can ever do. They have zero credibility. “Nada” is how a Mexican Amigo would say it. But I could be wrong. We are infamous for our short-term memory.

There is one area the ulama can be useful: as foreign language specialists. They can teach how to read, write and speak the Arabic language and help Pilandok understand the Holy Qur’an. And maybe, Pilandok can work as a Call Center Representative for Middle Eastern Companies.

If they can also teach Korean and Chinese languages, that would be wonderful too. Then Pilandok can fully enjoy watching all those Korean soap operas in native language and he can be prepared for the soon-to-be Chinese take-over of the world.
The ulama should now be confined to madrasas and never venture out into the Provincial Capitol, Municipal or City Hall.

Having said all of that and in fairness to the Political Ulama, we need to put the problem in perspective. A Political Ulama has dual personality: politician and ulama (a high-ranking religious scholar).

As a politician, I totally understand why he do what he does. I am cool with it. It is Pilandok who should be blamed for corrupting the system by extorting money from the politicians in exchange for his vote. In other words, Pilandok’s biggest enemy is himself. He is infected with a social disease, I call, “The Pilandok Syndrome”. This will be the topic of my next post.

During the incumbency of the Political Ulama, there really hasn’t been that much preaching about honesty in government. So perhaps, Political Ulama weren’t that hypocritical at all.

The problem is with his credential as an ulama. He is supposedly the guardian of our social morality instead, he become the worst delinquent. What he does is morally unforgivable. How can someone who supposedly knows the truth sprout the lies? That’s the reason why I talk about the ulama dilemma.

I wonder if Pilandok had the same experiences as the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran or the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.

Arata Wata also wonders what would it be like if the MNLF, MILF and all those other LFs have won the war of secession and we had our separate independent country ruled by Political Ulama. And the Slum-ic City of Marawi became the capital of the new Bangsa Muslim Republic. A dream or nightmare?

Panabiya ako ko manga ulama a di ron ki ola ola. Aya a pantag a giya a surat ak'n na para kambibitiyaraian tano so manga awid a akal tano sa Ranao na go tano maka pangiloba sa okit a ka ompiya i ron.

Welcome To This Blogspot!!

Let this blogsite be a virtual space for the people of Ranaw, the so-called street people of Banggolo,

to express their views,

to share their wishes,

to ask their questions,

to shout out their anger,

to wipe out their tears,

to pray for their dreams,

and

lastly

to hope for their bright and happy future.