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Elite Rule in the Philippines:

Roots, Dilemmas and AlternativesDavid Michael M. San Juan

Benedict Anderson says it’s a “cacique democracy.” Some Southeast

Asian academics label it as “low quality democracy.” All euphemisms and jargon

aside, Philippine democracy never exists. Instead of democracy, elite rule is what

Filipinos have. This early, the uninformed ought to be reminded that democracy

isn’t simply having a free press (and mind you, the Philippines HAS NO free

press – more on that later, and that’s actually another story) or having a

government that seasonally tolerates regular anti-government protest actions

near the presidential palace (and mind you, most Philippine regimes are

intolerant of such protest actions). Contrary to popular belief, the existence of

party-lists (small and relatively weaker non-traditional political parties usually

founded by grassroots organizations and/or enlightened segments of the middle

class) is actually a proof that Philippine democracy doesn’t exist. To begin with,

democracy will only exist where grassroots organizations (e.g. people’s

organizations) are in full control of – and not just given a paltry share of power in

– the government’s three branches. For as long as the common folks stay

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marginalized, competing for few token party-list seats in Congress, genuine

democracy won’t exist.

Elite Rule in Pre-Hispanic Times

Elite rule – the exact opposite of democracy – in the Philippines has

existed in the archipelago prior to the Spanish colonization. Benign as it is, the

rule of datus, rajahs and sultans in the archipelago was a version of elite rule too.

It’s just that the power of datus, rajahs and sultans appear to be “checked” or at

times even limited by the ancient Filipinos’ council of elders and the partially

collective ownership of land. The latter fact explains why the ancient datus,

rajahs and sultans can’t become very very wealthy and hence be able to buy

their way out to imposing elite rule. In fact, there was little incentive to become

wealthy during those times. Wealth has no use. You can’t even brag about it

because no one’s interested. Jewelry, a contemporary symbol of wealth, was

worn by ancient Filipinos not as a sign of wealth but just an expression of their

aesthetic inclinations. The Filipinos then were contented to just have something

to eat and a great majority won’t be interested in gaining wealth.

Colonialism as a Buttress of Elite Rule

When the Spaniards came, they merely strengthened elite rule by co-

opting most of the noble clans in the archipelago (with the exception of some

Northern tribes and the inhabitants of a great portion of Southern Philippines).

Most of the first barrio, town, city and provincial officials in the first decades of

Spanish rule came from these co-opted clans. They became the lapdogs of

Spanish colonialism in exchange for a relatively luxurious life as government

officials tasked with collecting taxes and having the rights to engage in the then

financially viable Galleon Trade. A number of these clans also became land

administrators of Spanish officials and even Spanish friars. It is very difficult to

explain how these noble clans adopted the Westerners’ alien concept of wealth

and luxury. Suffice it to say that the Spaniards were able to persuade the noble

clans that the possession of wealth is good and that they can only possess

wealth if they supported Spanish colonialism.

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Katipunan: Anti-Elite Rule At Birth

When Andres Bonifacio co-founded the first national organization of

armed revolutionaries against Spain (the Katipunan or the KKK), a chance to

smash elite rule through smashing Spanish colonialism popped out. Indeed, one

of the Katipunan’s major aims was to end the oppressive hacienda system (e.g.

feudalism) in the country which has benefited the abovementioned formerly noble

clans in cahoots with Spanish citizens. Had the Katipunan succeeded, the

Philippines would have become a strange country with socialist aspirations ala-

Cuba yet with some respect left for those who want to become rich(er) with some

limitations of course such as high taxes, ala-Scandinavia. This is because the

Katipunan was an organization composed of grassroots people such as workers

and farmers and middle class figures such as government employees and

Western-educated intellectuals. Had it survived as such, the country’s system

could have been more egalitarian yet at the same time not that averse to the idea

of some individuals getting rich, though not that rich. Certainly, such a system

would be very different from today’s elite rule.

Death of Katipunan: Hijacking of a People’s Revolt

Unfortunately, the Katipunan was obliterated when its middle class

elements succeeded in capturing its leadership role by murdering Bonifacio and

other similarly enlightened personalities. Hence, instead of a hybrid democratic

republic, Emilio Aguinaldo and his minions instituted their own version of elite

rule. They convened an elite-dominated Congress (the Malolos Congress) and

would have called for local elections where elite candidates could have easily

won had the Americans failed to intervene in 1899 onwards.

What Could Have Been: A Coalition Government in a Democratic Republic

Actually, even when Aguinaldo et al. were in power – with Bonifacio and

his men either dead or still reassessing their strategies – there was a slim chance

that his own version of elite rule could refashion itself in one way or another to

mirror the Katipunan’s more egalitarian aims. Apolinario Mabini, a very intelligent

man, Aguinaldo’s adviser and for a time, prime minister, came from a very poor

peasant family. Hence, he had the best of intentions when he continuously

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cooperated with Aguinaldo. He hoped that Aguinaldo would soon favor temporary

one-man rule (e.g. a revolutionary dictatorship with him as the chief) to swiftly

implement sweeping socio-economic reforms that could have smashed the

foundations of elite rule and colonialism in the Philippines. After such period of

temporary revolutionary dictatorship, Mabini dreamed of having Aguinaldo

shepherd the country’s transition to genuine democracy (e.g. a republican form of

government where the voice of the worker and the farmer would be enough to

peacefully drown out the voice of the businessmen and the weakened landlords

who by that time would have become landless thanks to Katipunan-inspired land

reform).

A Recurring Theme: From Patriots to Traitors

Unfortunately, Mabini was sidelined in Aguinaldo’s cabinet and the president’s

elite advisers – most of them would become traitors to the infant Philippine

republic as the Americans publicize and implement their imperialist ambitions in

the country – prevailed. No revolutionary dictatorship was instituted. Elite rule

was established, Philippine-style. Officials of the old colonial structures instantly

became the officials of the new Philippine “republic.” Hence, no land reform was

instituted. Farmers – who compose the majority then and now – were betrayed

by the leaders of the “revolution.” The status quo was secured.

Eternal Revolution

When the Americans began colonizing the Philippines in 1899, there was

another chance to overthrow elite rule as the people attempted to smash

American imperialism. Grassroots leaders of the now formally defunct Katipunan

started reorganizing the people along the Katipunan’s old slogans: freedom from

colonialism/imperialism and freedom from elite rule. These forces correctly

identified the new enemies: traitors to the republic who have embraced the

diamond shackles of American imperialism in exchange for wealth and a status

quo that favors them – elite clans who have become the new landowners after

the Americans instituted a new titling system (few Spanish citizens and friars

retained their landholdings) – and the American imperialists. Unfortunately, the

American imperialists are well-armed, politically and militarily. Politically, they

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strengthened elite rule by conducting local elections to attract and solidify the

support of elite and middle class citizens for American imperialism. They also

instituted a public health and education system so as to let poor Filipinos believe

in the great lie that Uncle Sam is a friend. Meanwhile, for the few intelligent

citizens who resisted American imperialism and the elite rule that it has instituted,

the Americans reserved the most brutal forms of anti-insurgency campaigns.

Hence, within a few decades, the Americans were able to “pacify” the Philippines

and the Filipinos’ formerly overwhelming clamor for independence and the end of

elite rule.

First Grand People’s Electoral Alliance: Socialists, Republicans and Anti-

Imperialists in the 1930s

Well of course, there will always be a few good men and women to stand

up for what is right and just. Farmers and workers and some intellectuals carried

on with the struggle for social transformation through various means and

schemes. They established unions and other organizations, continuously

claiming that their struggle is the continuation of good old Katipunan’s struggle

for an egalitarian social system. They clamored for immediate independence and

the overthrow of elite rule. They joined strikes, pickets etc. and even tried to win

in elections. For example, they fielded Gregorio Aglipay and Norberto Nabong as

candidates of a grand republican, socialist and anti-imperialist coalition against

Manuel Luis Quezon. Of course, we all know that the American boy won. Elite

rule has become so well-entrenched by that time that good candidates fielded by

the masses fail to win in elections. Indeed, some segments of the masses,

attracted by the charisma of many traditional elite candidates begin to bite into

the illusion that some segments of the elite would liberate them from poverty and

imperialism, and hence, it’s no longer necessary to join the radicals who reject

almost all elite candidates as part and parcel of the forces of elite rule in the

country.

Japanese Invasion and Beyond: Another Lost Opportunity

The radicals had another chance to once and for all smash elite rule and

at the same time wipe out imperialism when the Japanese invaded the

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Philippines. The Americans retreated. The Philippines was virtually an “open city”

for anyone powerful enough to grab it. The radicals – mostly socialists,

communists and anti-imperialists – established the People’s Army Against the

Japanese (the Hukbalahap). This army was able to liberate some parts of Luzon

from Japanese rule. Hence, some parts of Luzon were virtually under some sort

of self-rule until the Americans begin seizing the Philippines again. Unfortunately,

the Hukbalahap was politically unconsolidated. Instead of resisting the return of

American imperialists, the Hukbalahap leadership embraced the return of the

imperialists. Naively, the Hukbalahap leadership believed that the Americans

would help the Philippines. They never learned the lessons of history. Instead,

the Americans reinstituted elite rule by massacring entire Hukbalahap squadrons

who have the power to initiate an anti-imperialist struggle in the country, or at

least in Luzon.

When the Americans granted “independence” to the Philippines, elite

clans have recovered everything that they lost during the Japanese rule and the

short period of democracy in the Hukbalahap-led zones of Luzon (indeed, some

elite clans cooperated with the Japanese and when the Americans returned, they

became pro-American again). There was no land reform. Haciendas are still

everywhere. Hence, farmers who compose the majority are still economically

powerless to attempt any legal challenge to the status quo. Nevertheless,

remnants of the radical camp tried their best to win in the post-independence

elections. They did win some seats but the Manuel Roxas regime unilaterally

invalidated the few posts won by the radicals. Hence, remnants of the

Hukbalahap restarted a guerilla campaign against imperialism and elite rule but it

was too late for it to recover lost ground.

Fast-Forward to 2012+: Faces Have Changed But Nothing Has Changed

From the Roxas administration to the second Aquino regime, nothing has

changed. Elite candidates win the posts that matter. Poor citizens who intend to

“infiltrate” the ruling system via other legal means such as the bureauracy and

the judiciary face all types of obstacles (first-class education and connections).

Grassroots organizations still attempt to breach elite rule by entering the halls of

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power via the tokenistic party-list elections. Time and again, the radicals – from

the Partido ng Bayan in the late 1980s to the Makabayan Coalition in 2010 –

have attempted to field candidates too in top-level posts (e.g. in Senate) but none

has been successful despite their good platforms which are so publicized even in

the mainstream media. What went wrong then?

Obstacles to Building a Larger Radical Mass Base

As of now, the radical mass base is at 3 million. This means that not all

poor and middle class citizens are radicals. In other words, there are very few

radicals in the country, and shocker of all shockers, at least when it comes to

elections, most poor and middle class citizens are conservative! Unless the

radical mass base balloons to at least 30 million, no fundamental change via the

constitutional means would be successful.

Why is it that the radicals find it very difficult to broaden their base? It’s

very simple: the elite controls everything in the ruling system. First and foremost,

the elite controls the state security forces (armed forces and the police) which it

conveniently uses to scare the common folks who would want to join and/or help

the radicals in capturing state power through various means, both constitutional

and extraconstitutional. The Philippine state security forces are so unlike that of

Venezuela. For example, Hugo Chavez, a socialist and anti-imperialist who won

in many presidential elections in Venezuela is actually a former paratrooper! That

means that in Venezuela, those who hold guns are free to choose their ideology,

hence they won’t use their guns against those professing other ideologies.

Hence, in Venezuela, for as long as you can convince that your ideology is

superior, you can easily win in elections without being afraid of a possible

intervention of the soldiers and the police. In the Philippines, all soldiers and

police are expected to blindly perpetuate the status quo and consequently, they

are expected to blindly consider all enemies of the status quo – the radicals – as

the state’s enemies too. Goodness, how can socialist and/or leftist and/or anti-

imperialist candidates and parties win in Philippine elections when state security

forces are always here, there and everywhere to campaign against socialism,

leftism and anti-imperialism. Simply put, the radicals in the Philippines are

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hindered from peacefully exercising their right to broaden their base by the not-so

neutral and hence reactionary state security forces. Conservatives in the media

and the academe help perpetuate such situation by portraying socialism, leftism

and anti-imperialism as great evils.

Three Alternatives

What’s the solution then? There are three alternatives: overhaul the

education of future members of state security forces to instill in them respect for

other ideologies, engage in a great propaganda war against the status quo to win

the masses and the middle class against all odds and help precipitate the

capture of state power by the radicals through elections or other means (e.g.

genuine people power), or wipe out the ruling system by militarily defeating its

security forces. The paths exist. The reader must choose his/her own way now.