Public Office

Randy David is a popular columnist for the Philippine Daily Inquirer. He writes, "In our society today, a large number of individuals enter politics not because they have a vocation for it but only because they have an advantage they think they must not waste". He refers to the actors, athletes, television celebrities, scions of political dynasties and old wealth. He writes that one should not run on the basis of electability but rather on whether one has a political vocation. He quotes Max Weber who lists three essential traits: "passion, a feeling of responsibility and a sense of proportion".

Whenever I think of the sacrifices I will have to make in order to discern if I truly have a political vocation I always think of the sacrifices other people have made long before me for the good of the country to assuage my doubts and strengthen my commitment. Others have been imprisoned and tortured, others have lived away from family for many years and others have been killed. We need to continuously measure ourselves next to what these heroes have sacrificed.