Polytechnic University of the Philippines

College of Political Science and Public Administration

Department of Political Science

A Book Review of Moral Politics in the Philippines

Written Task

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

In

Fundamentals in Political Science

First Semester

2019-2020

Dator, Mary Joyce M.

BAPS 1-2

Submitted to: Mr. Elmer Soriano

SEPTEMBER 2019
INTRODUCTION

Wataru Kusaka, a Japanese author awakened by a riot in May 2001,

about the “solidarity” of Filipinos in resisting f or their liberty and equality
wrote a book titled “Moral Politics in the Philippines” wherein the concept is
to be neutral or unbiased in pointing out the pervading moral politics in the
Philippines. The audacity of the Filipinos to reform politics when its state
had failed to protect their prosperity and substinence － in contrast to his
people who heavily confide on the Japanese government captured his
interest. Through his admiration, he pursued to graduate school with the
desire of learning more about the Filipino people. On the other hand, his
perspective about this nation were somehow filled with confusion when
some supporters of the former president Joseph Estrada engaged in
succeed protests and mayhem to restore his power. Wataru Kusaka had
begun to wonder about the divided point of views of the people. He began
to deliberate about one’s morality and how it affects, and ravels the
conciliaton between the two spheres he later constructed in his study: the
civic, and mass spheres. This demarcation line between the mentioned
communities also provided the endangerment of Philippine democracy.

In our time where everyone is “entitled” to speak their mind and

adamant on coercing their ideas and ethics to others, this study opens a
new ideology for the public to consider despite of its diverse sanctimonius
beliefs. Kusaka applied the concept of dualism within himself to further
understand the Philippine society, and his aim to identify how a nation is
divided was obtained through neutrality and unprejudiced inquisition －
immersing himself in the impoverished areas of the country (living with the
poor, and forming relationships with them) and taking a degree in the
University of the Philippines at the same time (communication/interaction
with the “well-educated” ones).

As a novice in this field, it is new for me to encounter such kind of

inquiry for most of the materials provided to us in earlier years solely
focused on the left-wing politics which promotes social equality and
egalitarianism as well as in opposition to social hierarchy. I have always
encountered the ideology that neutrality is equivalent to condonation of
unethical behaviour, and disregard of responsibility of the oppressors and
in this book, a personal idea of mine is proven.
SUMMARY

The classification of one’s philosophy of what is “right” or “wrong” is

distinguished by his personal arrangement of morals. In politics, morals are
also the benchmark of what should be considered as “good” or “evil”,
creating a boundary between conformity and deviance in the nation-state.
Kusaka proved in his study that morality is complex, hence, it creates
antagonism against the opposition. Not only it hinders oneness of a nation
but it also plays a crucial role in the retardation of democracy. The book
discussed the hegemonic struggles of Philippine public spheres between
the civic (middleclass) and mass (improversihed) spheres, and how the
socioeconomic hierarchy in the Philippines preserved inequality between
the “rich” and the poor.

I. Analytical Framework

As stated by Kusaka in his study, consideration of factors such as the

political system, economy, social structure, and international environment
is essential in strengthening of a democracy. However, Philippine
democracy is ruled by the oligarchic elites which retains their power to
manipulate both the middleclass and impoverished. This inequality
originated from large landholdings that later evolved to capitalism.
Americans appointed the local elites as officals, therefore legitimizing the
exploitation of labor and ineffective social control in home regions. This
resulted to the establishment of “strong societies, weak states” wherein the
selected officials take their positions for granted and are too occupied in
preserving their own system of rule that protected their common interests
(although divided by language and are competing with one another). Some
members of the ruling class also use violence and coercion to further
manipulate the mass sphere (Sidel, 1999). Class became a more important
factor than ethnicity in Philippine politics (i.e. the Chinese mestizos taking
over provinces in Luzon and use them for their own leverage).

Machine politics refers to the In a [rural] society with its stagnant

economy and absence of social fluidity, the poor depend on the local elite
for employment and money-related issues which forms the clientele
relationship. However, according to a survey measured by Gini coeffiecient,
the declinement of Agrarian population (from 0.461 in 2003 to 0.430 in
2012) , enhanced urbanization, and rise of Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs) lessened the cases of patron-client relationship between the
wealthy and the poor. These changes in socioeconomic aspects in the
Philippines provided the mass a more free political participation in a fluid
society.

Even with the desire to establish clientelist relations through

slum-dwellers, politicians in Manila find it difficult to nurture stable
patron-client relationships due to the consistent shifting of the slum
population. The loyalty of the impoverished depends on the commodities
provided by elite. Their votes come from two factors, either it emanates
from their patron, or from their discussion with the environment. The latter
makes the wealthy anxious for they are already exercising their
autonomous role in electing. Most voters ignore the candidate’s political
party and simply concentrates on his personalities. The clientelist
relationship were rampant during Martial Law between the citizens and the
Nationalist or Liberal party which constrained the independence to vote.
On the other hand, two-party system was dissolved and multiparty system
emerged for ambitious politicans wanted to create parties of their own after
redemocratization.

As eloquently stated by Habermas (1990), the civic public sphere or

simply the middleclass men monitors abuse of state authority through
rational considerations. After the redemocratization of the Philippines in
1987, the civic sphere created an elitist mentality that they are the superior
class with their “transparency” through attaining high education (Pinches,
2010). In new politics which is to reform institutions, and revise existing
procedure to consolidate foundations is its the main goal, the civic sphere’s
objectives in reforming new politics are to end mass poverty, and political
illiteracy for gradual democratization and modernization. In hierarchic
societies, Fraser indicated that division of public spheres hampers effective
communication that threatens plurality and democracy.

As I have mentioned in the introduction, the Public Civil society is

divided into two spheres: Civic (middleclass) and Mass (Impoverished),
and the area where different people meet and create diverse authoritative
relationship is called the contact zone. Civic sphere opposes politics
involved in corruption, elite dominance over clientelism and cryonism. Their
morals intensified after the democratization in 1987 (Pinches, 2010).
Middleclass men are known to use the english language when involved in
intellectual conversations. Most significant relationships of these people
are those that extend beyond the geographic limits, such as with friends,
relatives, colleagues, and members of the group they participate. The
mass sphere form intimate relationships even with their neighbors and
usually use physical contact to convey deeper emotions to their companion.
Tagalog is their lingua franca and they use vernacular language. They use
concern for and toward those in need generosity to classify correct politics.
The poor is stereotyped as citizens living their lives in dishonesty for
engaging in bad activities to survive. They also see themselves as inferior
to the other classes － a reason why they accept neglection and
discrimination from the public. Their morals are focused on Catholicism
beliefs, and enduring all the hardships and everything will be worth it in the
end os one of them. The two spheres may have huge differences from
each other but they both share the same hatred towards the elite and
religion is their basis of morals.

II. Formation of the Dual Public Sphere

In the era of colonization, language played a vital role between the

elites and the poor. The wealthy studied the “noble” language for them to
be competent in joining intellectual discussions with the colonizers.
However, the poor believed that they can improve their socioeconomic
status by learning the foreign language.

During the Spanish colonization, only the mestizos

(Spanish/Chinese-Filipino) are able to attend prestige schools both local
and abroad. The indigenous people are thought of Catholicism and due to
religion order, teaching them kastila or the spanish language was illicit. In
American era, diverse indigenous dialects was seen as a barrier in
communication, hence, the Americans introduced their language to our
country and made it as the common language. The public education
system is in english language and every medium of instruction is in the
same language as well. Eventually, the Americans banned the ethnic
dialects and the elites conquered the language to fight for independence
from the United States. These activists were executed and called as
bandits. One’s english ability is a requirement to vote and english is also
used in the three branches of the state. Unlike the Post-hispanic
colonization where only 5% of the population knew spanish, more Filipinos
knew how to speak in english (38.55). Despite of this, english proficiency
was still considered as a class determinating factor. Those who are skilled
are most-likely employed either for public or private sector. In other words,
more opportunities were given to those who learnt the language compared
to the impoverished who were too busy working. The english language
might be open for the public during the American era, only the elites could
pursue it.

In terms of living space, the state’s effort to create a modern living

space became a problem for the insisting arrival of poor people from the
provinces. Because the population had exceeded to its limit of city capacity,
emergence of slums, informal settler jobs, and contratualization became a
trend. The capitalists and civic benefited from the cheap labors of the poor.
Both the civic, and mass spheres see each other as hindrances on
reaching their goals.

III. People Power and Moral Antagonism

The “we/they” relations started the People Power I with the perception
of a reighteous “we” against an evil “they”. Moral politics ensued because
of the death of Benigno Aquino Jr. in 1983. The church was one of those
who led the protest to oust the Philippine Former President, Ferdinand
Marcos. In 1998, Populism started to emerge in Philippine politics with
Joseph “Erap” Estrada won the presidential candidacy through criticizing
the ruling class. His characters in Filipino films also helped him won the
election. In 2001, he was found guilty in graft and corruption which pushed
the masses to perform the second People Power II. Nevertheless, his
supporters started a protest and riots and called it People Power III for
Estrada to restore his power after his impeachment. The civic sphere
condemned the third “revolution” seeing it as a mere riot by “masses” who
lacked “moral legitimacy”.
IV. Moral Antagonism in Elections

This chapter determines the Hegemonic struggles that undermines

faith in the electoral system. Although majority of the voters belong to the
impoverished class, their votes are manipulated and exploited among the
small group of elites for egocentric interests. Because of this, the civic
sphere had a sense of victimhood with the thought that the votes of the
poor were bought and won over through bribery and image manipulation.
Prevalent mistrust of on electoral process were developed. Church-related
NGOs held voter education campaigns in which they taught the poor to
vote in the “right” way to fix the conflict. This endeavor might opened the
contact zone where the mass and civic spheres can communicate, it is not
yet proven that it changed the poor’s attitude in voting.

V. Moral Antagonism in Urban Governance

In the implementation of laws, moral division of the nation worked

against the affairs of the poor. The desperate cries of the poor seeking for
help and assistance form its nation and state are neglected. Squatters and
street vendors, in order to secure their settlements and businesses, could
either resort to giving bribes or payments of "protection money" to those
officials or authorities tasked to evict them from their homes and take away
their living. Those in the civic sphere called them groups or members of
syndicates who do acts that violate the law with poverty as an excuse for
such behavior. The civic sphere considers it as something that “should”
happen according to its morals. Traffic congestion, slow economic
progress, and impeded modernization are caused by squatters and street
vendors, or those lying under the mass sphere. The rules of survival of the
poor are forsaken, and they are viewed as criminals instead of citizens who
needed help. The desire for political revision divided the people. In the
contact zone, amendments, and compensation are considered the morality
of mass sphere － to survive, and civic sphere to prioritize rule of law.
Housing projects for the squatters' resettlement and livelihood programs
that concerns their source of living are not a massive solution for those in
the mass sphere that are included in squatting and street vending. The
former has a subjected high payment, albeit may occur on installment, are
seen as more expensive than settling in squatter's area around Manila.
Low generation of income with maximal exert of efforts are seen as a
problem with the latter, making them resort to being back to their old
settlements, for these are what they saw as places that could ensure the
most of their survival.

VI. The Revival of Moral Nationalism

From the beginning of Gloria Arroyo’s second term in 2004 to Benigno

Aquino III’s Administration via the 2010 Presidential election, there was a
notable ease in the division between the spheres of the middleclass and
the poor. Quimpo (2010) conceptualized Estrada and Arroyo
Administrations as “vuturine regimes” that only varied from the pasts’
“clientelist regimes”. Peculiarities that discern predatory is the personal
disposition and degree of corruption of the President.
Arroyo attempted to consolidate the civic sphere. She adopted
populism as a scheme to appease the angry poor after Estrada’s
impeachment, which she took as a serious threat from the impoverished
class. She established a poor-friendly identity but still failed to win the
support of the poor because of her elite background. In 2005, a tape of a
wiretapped telephone conversation was made public, prompting ten
cabinet members and top bureaucrats to resign and cut their ties with the
administration (Hello Garci). A motion for impeachment was filed at the
House Of Respresentatives but it was blocked by Arroyo’s allies, who
where in the majority. Most of the poor complained that prices of goods had
risen under the administration as well during her administration. Arroyo
managed to remain president for ten years- four as successor and six after
being elected. She sustained her presidency through her success of
retaining the support of armed forces and members of the Lower House.
The middle class placed Arroyo in the presidency via People Power 2, but
due to different issues circulating the administration, the civic sphere felt
betrayed and remorse over Arroyo.

In 2010, the next president after Arroyo-- Benigno Aquino III entered
the scene as the clean, anti-corruption, and “national” solidarity candidate,
however reformative “people” turned Aquino as someone who came from a
traditional-elite family and veiled the deformity of socioeconomic class.
VII. Beyond Moral Politics

As the war of nation’s moralities continue to intensify, democratization

is endangered. The civic and mass sphere has their own objectives that
they want to obtain. Despite of the conflicts arising between these two
public spheres, there are certain events in the Philippine history where
class divisions were temporarily lifted. The People Power I to oust Marcos
and united once again on a retaliation against the corruption of Arroyo.
Solidarity of the nation emerge when people, regardless of their class,
cooperate with each other to oppose a certain system or individual.
Due to poverty, people in the mass sphere tend to vote for the
“pro-poor” politicians, which resulted to the civic sphere’s disapproval. The
civic sphere's interest focuses more on the political reform in order to have
a better community. Civic exclusivism constructs a moral antagonism
between the “citizens” who participate in politics “correctly” and “those
masses” who do not (good vs. evil). Despite the fact that both spheres
strives to eliminate corrupt politicians, the “citizens” and the “masses” differ
in how they pursue betterment. Due to different status in life, the civic and
mass sphere view each other's intention as invalid that widens the gap
between the two spheres.

CONCLUSION

In a world where morality is the basis of what something should be,

and what should be done, oneness of people are unattainable. Each
individual has his own beliefs, and philosophies that will constrain his acts
as a member of his nation. Each member of society, may he be a member
of the wealthy, middleclass, or poor, he will implement what his
environment’s morals dictate. In contemporary worId, I have always
wondered about the symptoms of superiority complex the civic sphere
performs. The middleclass see themselves as the righteous people who
should rule both the socioeconomic and political aspects of the Philippines.
Their education made them feel like they are the protectors of the land from
the oppressing, manipulative oligarchy ruled by plutocrats, and deviant
acts of the impoverished. Instead of cooperating with the poor to improve
society and reform politics, they exclude them from the picture for they
“lack” morality standards. The paradox of being educated has made its way
to the members of the civic sphere.