Pogi's Un-pa-pogi Legacy

             In Naga City, we fondly called DILG Secretary and former city mayor Jesse Robredo “Pogi.” We wonder how this came to be since he was never your pa-pogi politico. His un-pa-pogi ways are well-documented. You must have heard stories about the good Secretary disdaining tarpaulins welcoming him whenever he would grace an occasion or visit a locality, or the fact that he issued an order prohibiting local officials from putting their names, initials and images on government projects. Pogi frowned upon political pa-pogi-ism. Call it epal, if you will. He espoused working under the radar, work without fanfare.

Pogi had kept himself, his effectiveness, his competence, his achievements low-key. He was never front-page fodder. He never trumpeted the numerous reforms he initiated at the Department of Interior and Local Government. It is interesting to note that before his ill-fated flight, Pogi never had media exposure this long and this comprehensive. As a matter of fact, in the last survey conducted by Pulse Asia which was sometime in March, 2011, Pogi only had a 38 percent approval rating, a far cry from media-darling Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who led all cabinet officials with 61 percent.

With Pogi’s quiet public service and his tenacious stance not to indulge in the ways of pa-pogi politics, he was virtually shooting his national political career on the foot. The hype-influenced, machinery-driven popularity contest called Philippine Elections would have eaten the competent, effective, honest and sincere but low-profile Robredo alive. Not that this is Pogi’s fault, but this is because the established norm is not friendly to the likes of Pogi. And this in the most-awfully painful sense, bites.

Had he lived, he would never have become President, nor a Senator, not even Congressman. Not with the voting public’s distorted opinion of political characters as painted by media and PR persons, as well as a penchant to sway to the side of candidates or would-be candidates who enjoy front-runner status.

Pogi had none of these essential elements for a successful foray into national elective office—machinery, popularity and timing. But what he had was the drive to perform while shunning the spotlight. What he had was an ideal that public service was the first and foremost duty, the pa-pogi is never a part of it. What he had was the vision of the finished product—efficient, effective and transparent local governments which the people can and do trust. For him, the finished product will do the talking.

Sad to think that only after his death that the nation, as a whole, realized what a sincere and competent public servant Pogi was, and what a good national leader he could have been. Yeah, the what-could-have-been.

The life and death of Pogi essentially teaches us to dig deep into the pogi-ness of a politico. Some pogi-looking could be mere superficial creations of media, good PR guys and fancy tarpaulins in government projects. While those un-pogi-looking may actually be pogi deep inside, they just don't choose to indulge in pa-pogi ways. The public must learn the art of scrutiny-- to be like the suplada hot chick who does not fall for the mere flowers, chocolates, fancy cars and kilig texts of suitors but gets to know them first, does the research and looks inside their hearts. The public needs to be hard-to-get this time.

The 2013 Elections are coming. This is our time, our test.