Looking back, 10 years ago

It has been 10 years since my letter to the Philippine Star was published in the said broadsheet. It was the first time that a written work of mine was seen in a widely circulated print medium. I know I kept a clipping of this article, inserting it in our huge, antique Merriam-Webster Dictionary, but unfortunately, I couldn't find it anymore.

As a young teenager then, I wrote about being open about accepting money, specifically P500.00, in exchange for voting for a presidential candidate in 1998. "Of course I will accept the money!", I wrote. "Anyway, no one will know if I really voted for that candidate."

Today, at age 28, I ask myself the same question of whether or not to vote for a candidate in exchange for 500 bucks. I could not answer with the same conviction as before. Yes, I can still get away with the money while having the freedom to vote for my chosen bets, but thinking again, if I keep on accepting these bribes, I am not contributing to putting a stop on this vote-buying culture we have in Philippine politics.