A Reality Check on the Naga City Experience (Part 4)

II. Governance: Power versus Empowerment
As mentioned earlier, good governance is not an end in itself. Good governance is not achieved through a website proclaiming the programs of the government. It is not found in the stories about a politician’s love and devotion to his family and country, or in the seemingly simple lifestyle of an elected official. These may give a semblance of good governance but the true yardstick of good governance is human development.

Governing, as opposed to governance, puts weight on control to meet the needs of the people. Governance emphasizes the creation “of an enabling setting within which people can be more effective in meeting those needs for themselves.” This is exactly the goal of human development. Human development aims for people to fully develop to their full potential, and become agents of their own advancement. Thus, good governance lies in empowering the people, in facilitating human development.
Employing the Cartesian Methodic Doubt, how do we see a Mayor staying in power for the past 17 years? Forget about Marcos who was a dictator of the country for 21 years. What does 17 years mean to us?
Mayor Robredo’s 17 years in power manifests how he failed to groom anyone to take his place. The fact that we have failed to elect a new leadership indicates a lack of empowerment among our citizens.
Staying long in power must in all cases be suspicious. Has not Thomas Jefferson said, “whenever a man has cast a longing eye on office, a rottenness begins in his conduct?” History is replete with characters that latched on to power by all means, at all costs. We only need to skim through history to know that staying long in power stagnates the mind and the years breed stubbornness and folly.
Jefferson also said: “Experience has shown that even under the best forms of government, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.”
Again, there is only one word to describe good governance: empowerment. Good leaders empower their constituents, their communities, their institutions, and their environment. And the purpose is simple: to create a community of equals. This is the true yardstick of good governance.
How many among you can say with conviction that in dignity and significance we are co-equals with our political leaders? We do not value our citizenship because we do not see why it matters. We do not recognize the power within our hands. When I say citizenship in this context, I do not refer to your being a natural born or a naturalized Filipino. Citizenship means work towards the betterment of our society, armed with rights and privileges. Many of us fail to value our citizenship because we feel powerless. In our helplessness, we submit to the wrong idea that we cannot do anything.
Bad governance perpetuates the culture of dependence, the master and slave relationship between the leader and his constituents, between the elite and the masses. Bad governance does not promote and strengthen citizenship.
What does our constitution say? “Sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.” (11.1) This statement means that power comes from the citizens. We are the boss, and not Mayor Robredo!
When we elect our political leaders, we pass on that power to them. But the passing on of power is not something physical. It’s not like passing a ball to a teammate. That power is something spiritual. It’s like the passing on of an idea by a teacher to his student.