‘Si Juan Tamad, ang Dimonyo at ang Limang Milyong Boto’

Election is fast approaching. Many Filipinos are having a hard time deciding the right candidate to choose because this decision greatly affects us. It is therefore important to have campaigns that would inform people to decide rightly. One of the campaigns I am talking about is a play entitled ‘Si Juan Tamad, ang Dimonyo at ang Limang Milyong Boto’.

‘Si Juan Tamad, ang Dimonyo at ang Limang Milyong Boto’ is a theater play that depicts some of the Filipino cultures. It showed how Juan Tamad, who represents the Filipino people, changed from being lazy into someone responsible enough in making a move to change Isla Filiminimon to be better nation. He started this within himself. He registered for election and did not just stop his actions on the Election Day. He led the youth in watching over the politicians and in building changes for his place.

The Dimonyo in the play showed the negative side in Juan’s personality, who kept on discouraging him to change himself for better. The Dimonyo illustrates a part of ourselves that there are times when we tend to go against changes for the better, not because we don’t want to, but because we are afraid and too lazy to make a move.

As one of the million voters, we should be aware of the different consequences in choosing someone for a public office. We should be considerate in making wise decisions. We should be aware of the qualities of a good leader, which are effective, ethical and empowering. A good leader knows how to be efficient. Also, being ethical means having a strong principle. A good leader knows how to listen to his constituents and encourages them to participate.

One of the statements that struck me most is ‘I can make a change’. Most of us are afraid to embrace changes. We might think that this may harm us instead of improving ourselves. Because of this, we tend to depend on others, which we think is what we used to do. We often accept what is given to us without a question. That is why; we are stuck in a distress. Thus, we should be open to changes. We should not be afraid to make a move to change what is used to be because this could bring development for our country. The change should not start from other people. It should start from us.

Participating in the incoming election is what we should do and we should not just stop our actions here. As what the play says, ‘we should keep watching our politicians and should not just wait for them to make a move’. We should encourage other people to participate in our society for the development of country. We should believe that there is still hope for our nation.