The search for our next captain, revisited

IT was around this time last year that I wrote about our country’s search for the next president, likening the Philippines to a ship on a perilous journey. What are the necessary traits of a good captain or a president that would assure us of not just a chance of survival but a better future for our children and us?

I’m revisiting that article because what I said before seems even more relevant now given a very polarized electoral atmosphere as we near election day. The politics of color remains. The politics of hateful discourse is very much evident, especially on social media.

Our current situation: Thankfully, we seem to have recovered from the most difficult phase of the pandemic—when we suffered the worst contraction of our economy since World War 2. The Philippine Gross Domestic Product posted a growth of 7.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021, resulting in 5.6 percent full-year growth in 2021. Still, the pandemic is not yet over and the economy is expected to continue to have a challenging trajectory toward recovery. With more easing in February, we hope for a stronger economic recovery and growth this year.

Paradigm Shift: The next president will have to face tough challenges and will have to hit the ground running. Traditional credentials— past political positions, lineage, popularity, education, money, or power will not guarantee our survival. We will need a good driver, a pilot, and a captain of our ship, the “Philippines”, with exceptionally good leadership traits to overcome these obstacles and see this journey through. Traits of a good ship captain: Has a roadmap—our next president will need to present to us a roadmap to navigate through difficult times. This roadmap, platform, or agenda should be the focal point of the candidate’s campaign, not the song and dance or carrying of babies. It is also not just a lofty slogan or a campaign promise. It has to be a program of governance, answering not just the “what” questions, but also the “how.” How do we address poverty? Food security?

In the end, we all have our own set of reasons why we choose the president we want. I hope that the ones I mentioned here will in some way help you make your personal choice. We need to choose wisely. We only have one country and it is imperative that we choose not just the best but also the right captain of our ship —the Philippines.

Unemployment? Transportation? What about the West Philippine Sea? The Us-china conflict? Crime? Corruption? The growing gap between rich and poor? Climate change? This did not matter much before when life was better. Not anymore. To all those intending to seek the highest office, there is enough time to work out your roadmap.

Has the knowledge and experience—this

is not about having a doctorate degree or having studied in any of the Ivy League schools. Knowledge and experience means knowing exactly what needs to be done when it has to be done. Such acumen is borne out of one’s life experiences that in turn shape one’s character. How was the candidate growing up? How did he/she manage people, school, work, business and other situations? How did the candidate deal with conflict? With opportunities? With crisis? Did he/she pivot well? Is he/she resourceful? Was the candidate humble enough to learn and listen to others? Open to new ideas and innovation? John F. Kennedy once said that learning and leadership go hand in hand. Indeed. A true leader is learned and continues to learn.

Has the right moral compass in place—most important of all, is the candidate showing he/she has the right moral compass? That he/she knows what is right from wrong? The inner voice that tells him to decide and fight for the greater good, the natural compassion and the empathy for the least of his/her brethren, the sense of family and fear of God? In this journey of national survival, the good leader will leave no Filipino behind.

There are other things we desire for our leader to succeed, such as a good and competent support team, a good intuition on international affairs, a love of the environment, a set of reliable local and international network, good communications skills, among others.

In the end, we all have our own set of reasons why we choose the president we want. I hope that the ones I mentioned here will in some way help you make your personal choice. We need to choose wisely. We only have one country and it is imperative that we choose not just the best but also the right captain of our ship—the Philippines.