Dynasty 
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A dynasty is
a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign
states'
history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient
Egypt and
the Persian Empire. Much of European political
history is dominated by dynasties such as the Carolingians, the Capetians, the Bourbons, the Habsburgs, the Stuarts, the Hohenzollerns and the Romanovs. Until the 19th century,
it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize
his dynasty; that is, to increase the territory, wealth and power of
family members.
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MANILA, Philippines - While
admitting it is powerless to stop political families from running in the next
elections, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said they are just leaving it
to the voters to put an end to political dynasties.
In the absence of any law
banning political dynasties, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said the
poll body could not prohibit or control them.
“There’s nothing we can do.
There is no enabling law that prohibits political dynasty though it is
prohibited under the Constitution,” Brillantes explained.
Brillantes stressed Comelec
needs the law to take action, and at this time they can only administer what
law provides.
The Constitution provides
that “the State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public
service, and prohibit political dynasties as
may be defined by law.”
But Brillantes suggested
that the voters, particularly those advocating against political dynasty,
should take the initiative against the issue.
“People’s initiative is the
best move so that it would not pass Congress because they (lawmakers) will not
do something that will directly affect them. For me, that is the real
solution,” Brillantes said.
* *
* * *
Selected quotes from Federico Pascual's & William Esposo's
columns:
On the matter of political dynasties lording it over the masses,
for instance, we do not need a law to define for us what a “political dynasty”
is. We know it when we see it in all its detestable details.
*
* *
REJECT DYNASTIES: Even in the absence
of an enabling law that the Big Boys in the Congress refuse to pass despite a
constitutional command, THE PEOPLE KNOW the candidates of political dynasties
whose only claim to eligibility is the family name they carry.
In a nation of almost 100 million only a dozen old political clans
and another dozen emerging dynasties — some of them celebrity creations —
continue to run our private lives and run away with public funds.
We cannot just watch helplessly as key government posts are passed
on to politicians’ wives, children, siblings and close relatives as if these
were family possessions.
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Two recent controversies
demonstrated Filipino dysfunctional thinking — the Cybercrime Prevention Act of
2012, or also known as Republic Act (RA) 10175, and the dynasties issues in
Philippine politics. What may be obvious is dysfunctional thinking but that’s
clearly rooted to a damaged culture, a culture that had preconditioned many
Filipinos to think and react the wrong way.
Take the case of those
bemoaning the spread of political dynasties. Don’t you think that it’s
illogical to hope that a political system dominated by political dynasties will
resist the dismantling of their source of power and wealth? So why are so many
Filipinos demanding from the ruling elite to craft the enabling law that will
stop political dynasties? It’s stupid.
The problem is nobody wants
to invest time, resources and labor to uplift the bottom part of Philippine
society — the poorly informed and poorly educated who are suckers for electing
showbiz personalities and clan members of political dynasties. The only real
solution is to elevate the level of political discourse so that even the poorly
informed and poorly educated are empowered to appreciate real issues from
illusions offered. Only when Filipinos reach that level of appreciation can we
expect an irreversible rejection of the political dynasties.
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Imagine that — even Manny
Pacquiao is now out to establish his own political dynasty? His wife is running
for vice governor in Sarangani while his brother is running for congressman in
South Cotabato. What has Manny Pacquiao accomplished as a public official to
justify having more Pacquiaos in public office? What are the qualifications, to
begin with, of all three of them to deserve becoming congressmen and vice
governor? In Cavite, there are two Revillas running and if they win, that will
make three Revillas in this Cavite dynasty. Same question — what have Senators
Ramon Revilla and Bong Revilla done to deserve a political dynasty?
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When we succeed in
transforming our voters into better-informed and more discerning bosses — that
will be the time when we can enact all the legislations that will remove all
the inequities in our system. Everything begins and ends with the voter. If the
voters keep electing clansmen of political dynasties, then they deserve the
downside that these dynasties bring.
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We know who the candidates of dynasties are. In protest, LET’S
JUST NOT VOTE FOR THEM — especially those running for Senate and House
seats. This is our people’s initiative that will not waste more taxpayers’
money.
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