Promises Made ... Promises Broken

The Philippines is the land of broken campaign promises. A lot of our politicians in their enthusiasm to make a dent in the voter's who's who ... are making campaign promises that are just too big for comfort. Their promises looked empty ... they were unattainable ... like Impossible Dreams' unreachable star. 

Promises made and promises broken ... goes the cliche so while the Impossible Dream becomes the symbol of hope and perseverance ... it continues to inspire people across cultures and generations, reminding us that the impossible can become possible if we are willing to follow our dreams, believe in ourselves, and never give up. Little did they realize. that the more vocal they become ... their promises become cheaper by the dozen and before they know it will end only in the boulevard of broken dreams.

PRRD promised to end illegal drugs and criminality and to defend the West Philippine Sea ... and the rest was history. We knew what happened to that. For his part, BBM promised to have rice prices within the 20-30 range ... that never happened even though he was head of the umbrella of the Department of Agriculture.

In recent times, no president has kept all his promises. Their advisers should have reminded them of the difference between general rhetoric and specific promises. Campaign promises are very successful at tying the politicians' hands, especially when he is running for reelection ... or he is just one politician who is very particular with image ... especially keeping his mantra ... "Promises made ... promises kept."

If the candidate is extra careful and avoids making specific promises, that will give him the upper hand and control of the sound bites. If there are little loopholes ... his spin doctors can easily twist the facts and the discussion is remedied. 

Voters didn't mind it when candidates were vague on what they promised. BBM for instance in the campaign trail ... felt it would be good to have the rice price between 20-30 pesos. That's very specific.  The voting public as well as the opposition has retentive memories ... and they will rub it on BBM's face if he fails in his effort. 

He should have said: "If elected president ... I will make it my priority to lower down the escalating rice prices." 20-30 pesos is a barometer ... a point of reference ... a benchmark of whether you have succeeded in your promise or not. Look at BBM now ... he provided the last nail in his political coffin ... and memes about rice at 2o pesos haunt him like nightmares till the wee hours of the morning. (The most effective meme is the one shown above at Caption That... a 20 pesos rice in a plastic bag for ice water or ice candy.)

Recent studies find strong evidence that voters punish erring candidates for changing positions ... or making bogus claims and campaign promises.  They too do not penalize —and sometimes reward—candidates for remaining vague. See the irony?

The moral lesson for politicians is transparent and crystal clear: The best way to avoid having to keep your promises ... is to not make any ... in the first place.