Turncoatism!

As I write this, I had recently just read that former BBM supporters were pushing for the president to resign his position in order to make way for the vice president to take over. Opposition supporters - of which I am a part of, but more on that some other time - are frothing at the bit, preparing their I told you sos and Here it comes, many giddy with anticipation at the shitshow that the government is slowly turning into. 

I'm at a loss at the kind of follower base the top two elected officials have. Don't  get me wrong, the loss of Leni hit me pretty hard (though not as hard as some of my fellows in the campaign, it should be said), and as acceptance settled in, the anguish turned to disappointment, tainted with a little bit of hope that maybe we were wrong, but the chaser was the reality that this was probably the most absurd of wishful thoughts. But that aside, the ficklemindedness of the 31 million voters is just insane, even when Filipinos are considered. It's hardly even been 100 days since Marcos Jr. took over, and some of his followers are throwing him under the bus already? Unreal, man. 

People who share my sentiments about the kind of individuals who voted for Marcos have this visual image of the quintessential Makoytard: lower to lower middle class, living from payday to payday, if at all, and given to blowing their hard-earned cash to the first frivolity that comes along, be it a case of alcohol or the next big gadget. These people are sniveling, giggling members of the masa who respond to witty repartees with "E di ikaw na" or "Naol", and are happily content to be their boorish selves, to the shock of the more gentrified citizens. We are convinced that they shake their fists at their so-called betters who - they believe - look down at them from their glass towers with disapproving looks and upturned noses. These are the same people who celebrated with glee when Marcos was declared the winner, because the landslide win was a victory for the masses, a big middle finger to the ruling class and the landed gentry, a victory for the little people who we just want to help, so why won't they listen to us?

Except they're not like that. Though they may have celebrated like monkeys when Marcos won, the people I know who voted for him are a very mixed bag. Some of them are, yes, creatures from the black lagoon who probably deserve to be shot for some sort of misdeed at any given point in their lives, but these guys are the minority, and we have them too in the opposition anyway. A lot of the majority are people I have come to respect one way or the other because of talents that they've made very much their own. Many of them are well-educated, and are contributing members of society. They're the last people you would expect to be traitors to their own causes, because of their personal convictions and hopes and dreams. 

Which is why the diaspora (has it reached that level yet? Let me know in the comments) of Marcos' supporters is so perplexing for me. They aren't dumb, for the most part. A lot of them are (sigh) educated enough to know that it takes a while for a sitting president to effect discernible change (although BBM is on track to challenge this). What the hell is going on? Since when did the die-hard Pinoy follower, who would follow Manny Pacquiao to the depths of Mexican hell and back regardless of his wins; who would watch Miss Universe with bated breaths and vehemently curse organizers and winners who rob Pinay candidates of their wins; and who are clannish at best, regionalists at the worst, even at the worst of times, become such turncoats?

What the hell is going on here?