There are no meaningful reforms in government because justice remains selective and is pursued for all the wrong reasons to promote some political ends. Sadly, we all become willing participants in this pursuit because of the belief that rightly or wrongly, sending some people to jail, regardless of motivation and purpose can lead to some positive results.

This of course is not true. In fact, a lot of our woes are mainly rooted in our misplaced, if not outright misguided sense of adventurism and vigilance.

Because of our earnest desire to address corruption, we become easily swayed by political propaganda and motherhood narratives peddled by people whose goal is to simply install themselves in public office in the guise of advancing good governance. In fact, we even support any move to oust a public official albeit it is selective and at the expense of the rule law.

We pat ourselves on the back, thinking we are doing some public good although in reality we are just being used as pawns by these unscrupulous politicians who weaponize our vigilance for their own advantage. And the fact that our politics is personality-based just exacerbates this.

Certainly, public office is public trust. There is no doubt about it. But for public accountability to work, justice should be pursued indiscriminately regardless of one’s political color or affiliation.

So, if our lawmakers pool together their resources to investigate the Vice President, we should demand that they also investigate those who are similarly situated, including their colleagues and perhaps even themselves, if warranted. If we allow them to be selective, we are simply enabling them to use every opportunity to weed out a threat for their own political survival and advancement. After they get what they want, they forget our cause and couldn’t care less if justice is truly served.

When Binay ran for the presidency, he was number one in the surveys. In one fell swoop as cases were filed against him and his family one after the other, he fell from grace. Sadly, none has been heard about those cases because his opponents already got what they wanted.

The same is true as regards the PDAF controversy. The witnesses identified certain lawmakers who unlawfully benefited from the pork barrel. Yet, cases were filed only against the political opponents while the supposed allies of the then powers that be were spared. None of these cases seemingly prosper as those involved have gotten their grooves back and are now lording it over their former opponents in government. “Weather-weather,” as they say.

For genuine reforms to happen, we should all realize that any significant change is a process and not a one-time event. Just because politicians portray themselves as saviors doesn’t mean we should believe them and hand over to them the key so they could do anything they want to. We should always remain vigilant and indiscriminately hold everyone accountable.

Most of all, we should always uphold the rule of law. I still distinctly remember when former President Estrada was forcibly removed from office. Although, I was relatively young then, I was among those few who were opposed to it not because I was his supporter but because I did not like the way they did it.

While it is true one should be held accountable for his alleged wrongdoings, he should go through the process within the confines of the law. If we force it like we did in Estrada’s case, we may achieve a noble end but since the means are compromised, it becomes a slippery slope.

The rule of law is not an overnight creation but a product of our collective experiences as a people. Once we allow it to be abandoned, the unscrupulous would use that opportunity to accomplish some fiendish ends.

You see, the rule of law is like surgery. You couldn’t care less until you need one!