OFWs Can Become a Political Force
Jon Mariano

The leaders of big religious groups including the Catholic Church, Iglesia ni Cristo, El Shaddai, Born again, and others are being courted by politicians come election time. No one can accurately measure the power they have but they are forces to reckon with. A politician worth his salt should not miss courting any one of them.

What promises do you think they get? And what do they actually get once the politician they support get into power? Apparent prizes are in government appointed positions. And from those positions, these sectarian men can help out their churches in some way or another.

How about the OFWs, can they muster the same political clout?

In paper they should be. Their number is greater than that if not comparable to any of these religious groups except the Catholic Church. On the other hand, the OFWs as a group has no spine to make it a strong entity. Sure they're many, they're highly educated, and relatively financially well off; but organization and control is just impossible. It's a group too thinly scattered in all nooks of the world.

Their weakness is exposed in the current move to amend the constitution. They're going to lose their voice, but nobody is protesting to protect it. You might think that they don't care! But they do, I'm so sure of it. You see them in Filipino political blogs, and it is a safe bet that they're representatives of their group. They're not speaking for others, but what they speak must be shared by the majority in their own local groups.

A few political groups were started. Some even tried to get a party-list representative voted into congress, but none was recognized. It is again another proof that this sector is a disjointed one. We need to correct this, but how?

I think that technology will offer a solution. As it is, OFWs and expat voices are being heard. The great barriers of distance and space are starting to brake down. It's just a matter of time before a potent force is born.

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