Commentaries: Buying and Selling of Votes

Netizen asked: What is your take on buying and selling of votes?

Response: "When you decide to sell your vote, society is not responsible for that. You made that decision, so you own the moral consequences of that decision.

I often hear the excuse that people sell their vote, or they vote for bad officials because of their poverty. I think it is the reverse. People's poverty is the direct consequence of how people vote and who they vote for. 

If you keep voting for people who have already demonstrated beyond doubt that they will steal from you, society is not to blame for your poverty or your dire circumstances. You deserve to wallow in your poverty.

No more excuses for ignorant voters, please."

The selling of votes is not new in Philippine politics. If someone offers P500 in exchange for your vote, by all means, take the money. But it doesn't mean you will write his name on the ballot. You still have the option to choose the candidate you feel is President Right.