Many dynasties ‘trimmed down’
after May 2013 elections

ROUGHLY HALF of the top 20 “fattest” dynasties in the Philippines were trimmed down in the 2013 midterm elections, but a significant proportion still remains in place.

Prof. Ronald U. Mendoza, director of the Asian Institute of Management Policy Center, said initial analysis of the election results from the May 2013 polls showed that 10 of the 20 fattest dynasties in the country had lost ground or grown thinner.

Mendoza spoke at a seminar on investigative reporting for journalists in the Visayas that the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) is conducting in Cebu.

“Fat” dynasties, Mendoza said, refer to families whose members have already occupied multiple elective positions in government for a particular term. In this manner, a fat dynasty has already grown sideways, spreading more members across several elective positions.

Thin dynasties, on the other hand, are political clans that have virtually cornered an elective position, but have not expanded their influence to other positions.

Mendoza said that data from the Commission on Elections show that while half of the 20 top dynasties in the country have become thinner, 35 percent of these dynasties remained unchanged. On the other hand, 15 percent of the fat dynasties became even fatter.

Examples of fat dynasties that thinned down, or lost positions in 2013, include the Ampatuans of Maguindanao province, the Villarosas of Occidental Mindoro, and the Fuas of Siquijor.

“Half of them have been declining,” Mendoza said. “Pinapapayat ng mga mamamayan ang mga fattest dynasties.” [The people are thinning down the fattest dynasties.]

However, Mendoza cautioned the reporters against making sweeping assumptions based on the statistics he presented. For example, Mendoza said that while the thinning of fat dynasties may seem to be reason for anti-dynasty groups to celebrate, it would also be important to look at who replaced these dynasties.

Mendoza said reporters should also avoid lumping all dynasties together, and assuming that a local government unit that gets rid of a dynasty would automatically see improvements in governance and the local economy.

While data show that high poverty incidence increases the chance for dynasties to grow and become fatter, he said, one cannot automatically assume that the dynasties themselves are the cause of poverty.

“Walang evidence so far that more dynasties cause more poverty,” Mendoza said. “Tignan rin ninyo ang mga pumalit sa mga dynasty, wala ring binabago.”

[There is no evidence so far that more dynasties cause more poverty. Let us look too at who have replaced these dynasties, because they have not changed much.]

Mendoza said the reason for the failure of former dynastic areas to improve immediately may be because the structures and systems are already in place to make it difficult for non-dynasty leaders to move the area forward.

Mendoza also made an observation that sparked a discussion among reporters present — that in areas with more AM radio stations, fat dynasties appeared to be getting thinner. However, more elective positions were being captured by the other, thinner dynasties, instead of non-dynasty candidates.

Several reporters remarked that the findings would seem to show that the presence of AM radio stations in a local government unit actually encourages the proliferation of dynasties.

However, Mendoza explained that while media helps in leveling the playing field and thinning fat dynasties, the only ones in the proper position to take advantage of the vacuum are the thinner dynasties.

“The ones who are taking advantage of the level playing field are also the other dynasties, kasi sila ang pinaka ready,” Mendoza said. “They have their acts together, kaya sila ang papasok.”

“Because our democracy is so uneven, ang mag tatake advantage would be yung mga malakas na,” he added.