Your vote is not a joke!

Pfact, the Constitution describes and employees must at all times be accountable to the people whom they are sworn to serve.

Each time I hear government leaders blaming or threatening critics for the problems they could not solve — and I’m talking not just about the present administration — I wish somebody would come up to them and show them a copy of their

reminded of their sworn duty.

Section 1, Article XI of the Constitution mandates public servants to serve the people “with utmost responsibility, integrity,

with patriotism and justice” and to “lead modest lives.”

The draft federal constitution submitted by the Duterte- appointed Consultative Committee and the version of the House of Representatives have adopted this provision word for word.

So, even if a new constitution is in place, it would not be a waste of resources if this provision were to be printed on big boards to hang conspicuously on the walls

- fully to remind public officials and employees on how they must behave in public, at least.

There must also be a copy of this provision in places where President Rodrigo Duterte speaks, and when his spokesmen clarify or interpret his public statements, to remind them on how they should conduct themselves.

We should not get used to hearing the President’s curses and jokes, or his accounts of his misbehavior in his youth, and later listening his spokesman dismiss them as jokes.

On a taxi ride a few nights ago, the driver said he was disturbed that the younger generation was being exposed to the kind of government leaders we have today. He said he was worried that children would no longer show respect to elders and leaders because it seemed all right that none other than the country’s top leader gets away with things like molesting the housemaid, killing people, and cursing the Pope and the bishops.

I reminded the driver that there was nothing new to the President’s behavior from the time he was mayor of Davao City and when he was campaigning in 2016, yet he still won the electios with 16 million votes and, if we are to believe the surveys, a majority of the respondents still trust him.

The driver retorted that Duterte got his votes from people who spoke his language and who behave the same way.

Then I said we should be more worried in the next elections because I hear more people speaking his language and laughing at his jokes, even if those were already insulting.

Over the weekend, I shared news writing tips and techniques to a group of men and women, describing themselves as social media warriors. A mere mention of Duterte’s name elicited murmurs like lunatic, psychotic, madman, among several descriptions not normally appended to a president.

But, the President does not seem to be affected at all by these annoyed reaction from people. He has publicly acknowledged that he has a foul mouth, and that he is not the typical gentlemanly president. Even then, it’s quite disturbing that he has been joking too much.

One month before he assumed the presidency in 2016, Duterte promised to stop cursing and to behave out of respect for the Of-

More than two years later, he has been cursing more often than he was during the campaign period. Hopefully, his jokes are not -

the joke is on us.

The election period for the May 2019 elections has begun. All the more that we should be discern-

candidates we would be electing

Will they live up to the expectations and accountabilities of public officers as required in the Constitution?

We don’t need more jokers in public service. We already have a surplus of them. Please start scrutinizing the candidates begging for your one powerful vote, and make it count. Your vote is not a joke!