Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology

College of Arts and Social Sciences

Department of Political Science
Andres Bonifacio Ave., Tibanga, Iligan City, 9200 Philippines
Academic Year 2020 - 2021

How the COVID-19 Pandemic Unmasks the Truth of Our Liberal Democratic Society

An analytical essay

Melit Jane R. Yu

Department of Political Science

POS142: Modern Political Theories

Ma’am Yasmira Moner

November 2020

How the COVID-19 Pandemic Unmasks the

Truth of Our Liberal Democratic Society
I am a Filipino. I live in a democratic country which is one of the most badly affected

by the COVID-19 pandemic with 402,820 confirmed cases and 7,721 deaths as I write. This
crisis has laid bare the naked truth of our liberal democratic order – every socio-economic

and political inequalities that has always been here, now more exposed, now more severe.

Right at a time when the typical Juan struggles for his very subsistence due to the economic

backlash of the pandemic; a time when people need health and financial assistance the most

from the very government that they elected and consented to. As we project our discontents,

it is important to have an intellectual basis for our sentiments.

Modern political philosophy has evolved from the previous philosophies. While the

latter claims that power emanates from the divine, the former challenges this view and

espouses the ideas of logic and reason, separation of church and state, that sovereignty

emanates from the people, and that the governed are called citizens and they have rights. This

analytical essay claims that knowledge of modern political philosophy can address the

discontents of the world populace by: 1) Providing explanations to the philosophical and

intellectual basis upon which our society is built; 2) Which reminds us of our rights and

grounds our social and political sentiments, allowing us to diagnose the ills of today’s liberal

democratic order; and 3) Thus allows us to see a concept of a “better normal” and navigate

towards a more promising future in a post-pandemic world.

While there are different views of liberal democracy, it is generally understood that –

according to Klosko (2013), the main concern of the liberal political theory is the individual

and his rights. However, today we see a disappointing reality that challenges the very core of

a liberal democratic society such as: the lack of guarantee in our individual and minority

rights; an attack to our most basic rights to life, liberty, and property, freedom of speech and

peaceful assembly, equal treatment before the law; and the list goes on.

Filipinos are no strangers to socio-economic and political inequalities, not to mention

natural disasters, and today – this pandemic. Many livelihood has been affected by the latter.
The lockdowns imposed have added to the burden for farmers who are among the

beneficiaries of the government’s P1.17 trillion stimulus package, but these interventions are

still not enough to fully support them, remaining vulnerable to natural disasters and the

limitations of the pandemic (Mongabay, 2020). Five jeepney drivers, including one senior

citizen were flagged down by cops on their way to UP –the venue allowed for public protests.

They were going to protest against what they describe as a "phaseout" of jeepneys in the

government's delayed attempt to modernize public transportation (Rappler, 2020). Despite a

scandal involving alleged corruption in the state health insurance system, the lion’s share of

the proposed P204-billion budget of DOH next year will go to Health Secretary Francisco

Duque III’s office while the next biggest slice will go to controversy-wracked, PhilHealth

(Inquirer, 2020). All of these issues are very unbecoming of what a liberal democratic society

ought to be.

Intelligent men naturally wish to understand the authority under which they live, to

analyze its organization and its activities, to speculate the best form of political existence

(Gettell, 1923 p.214). Modern political philosophy grounds our sentiments on concrete

foundation of political ideas that have long existed before our time, and is the very core of

how our society, government, and nation is structured. Knowing modern political philosophy

is conducive to better understand the society we live in; knowing how it works and why it

should work. It allows us to appreciate the differences among many government forms and

the philosophy they are anchored in. It allows our minds to be open to other possibilities, and

not condemn different people for having different political beliefs. Importantly, by learning a

political theory, we then see the flaws in how it is adapted in a society, especially the one we

live in, and thus be able to diagnose and remedy it.

Learning the liberal political philosophy in particular, is a way to remind ourselves that it is

okay to react to any acts of oppression from those in power; that it is not illegal, but rather is
within the scope of our rights. That the participation in the decision-making process is not

only for politicians, but for citizens importantly. It reminds us that we have every right to

assert our freedom and equality, demand accountability, criticize, be politically involved, and

present alternative policies – rights that most Filipinos have forgotten to exercise.

The pandemic exposed every stubborn corner of how the society is structured i.e. the

efforts, if ever there are any, of those in power show not only their competence in governing,

but especially their true intents. Do they answer when the people call upon them or do they

disappear? The actions or inactions of this liberal democratic government has awakened the

masses to the reality of the society we live in.

The better normal in a post-pandemic world is a society wherein the government had

learnt from its errors during the pandemic, and even since this commonwealth was built.

Example, prioritizing our friendship with China and not immediately imposing travel bans

upon the surge of the COVID-19 had led our country into disarray. In this new world, our

people are prioritized first – their lives and health. It’s a world where we fulfil our duties as

citizens and cooperate with the government in order to do our part in mitigating the spread of

the virus – or in a post-pandemic world, listen to the government when it gives policies that

we see, are beneficial to the country and its people. The authorities should also do their other

end of the bargain, which is to govern the people in the most accountable, transparent, and

competent way.

Resilience and self-sufficiency of the Filipino people alone is futile when not backed

by government support. Not to mention that we have a problematic concept of “resilience” –

one that has become depoliticized, and is rather viewed as self-help rather than a synthesis of

social and political processes. In this new world, there is a shift in government policies, i.e.

the head of the Department of Health is a doctor – one that is both knowledgeable and
passionate, as he/she represents an essential part of society which he/she is a member. This is

true to all other departments in the Philippine bureaucracy. In this new world, the government

no longer tolerates corruption, they listen to the cries and demands of the people, and allow

peaceful protests that are very much within the scope of their rights. Our country is now

proactive not reactive i.e. improved protocols for health and safety, re-assessed policies,

safeguarded people’s employment and livelihood, and provided financial relief for lost

income.

May the lessons of the pandemic turn us into better citizens, remind ourselves that we

should not blindly take a side, but we should be critical. The choice should not be the lesser

evil, but what is right.

References:

Conde, M. (2020, May 7). For Philippine farmers reeling from disasters, lockdown is

another pain point. Mongabay. https://news.mongabay.com/2020/05/for-philippine-

farmers-reeling-from-disasters-lockdown-is-another-pain-point/
Gettell, R. G. (1923). The Nature of Political Thought. Am. Pol. Sci. Rev., 17, 204.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/1944108

Klosko, G. (2013). History of political theory: An introduction: Volume II: Modern (Vol. 2),

157. Oxford University Press.

Talabong, R. (2020, July 27). Five jeepney drivers arrested on way to SONA 2020 protest.

Rappler. https://www.rappler.com/nation/jeepney-drivers-arrested-on-way-sona-

protest-july-27-2020

World Health Organization (2020, November). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) situation

dashboard. https://covid19.who.int/region/wpro/country/ph

Yap, D. (2020, September 10). Duque’s office, PhilHealth get bulk of DOH budget despite

scandal. Inquirer.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1333570/duques-office-philhealth-

get-bulk-of-doh-budget-despite-scandal