The Problem With The Opposition In A Presidential System Is That It Only Seeks To Be Popular, Not Credible

I agree that there has to be opposition to make a healthy government. Not everyone should agree with President Duterte or WHOEVER. However, I'd like to stress out the REAL PROBLEM with the opposition in the presidential system - not just the Philippine opposition as of late. This is where things get messy. Presidential democracies tend to think that democracy is the rule of the majority over the minority. Back to basics - do you even know what a democracy is? It's a government of the PEOPLE, by the PEOPLE, and for the PEOPLE.

I remembered the call of #OtsoDiretso was for check and balance. But what were they doing during the campaign period? It's not just Bum Aquino degrading himself by selling fishballs rather than by continuing his Go Negosyo program. It's not about them criticizing President Duterte. Rather, the problem is that they got too focused on popularity. A good example was when they decided to use the jetski hyperbole against President Duterte. Did they even forget that Noynoy Aquino also has a hyperbole to fulfill? They went to Marawi and for what? It wasn't wrong to point out the slow work in progress but did they give alternatives to make Marawi's rehabilitation work better and faster? It looks like they only wanted to take a spotlight from the present administration. They should've been focused on improving performance overall. Instead, the popularity-based presidential system makes it a contest of popularity between the majority floor and the minority floor to whoever will get the most votes in the next election. Would have Gary Alejano recovered the Scarborough Shoal or would have they given better alternatives for Marawi - #OtsoDiretso would've won!

How does the Westminster parliamentary's opposition differ from the presidential opposition? It's all about working together for a better good. The opposition would have shadow ministers and a leader of the opposition. Let's say that either Mar Roxas or Bum became the opposition leader. Let's consider it if Prime Minister Duterte and Opposition Leader Bum were head-on in the Parliament. Let's say the last tackled topic was #SeaGames2019. Both sides will hold each other accountable. Both sides may bring their own contractor to help in finishing the venues necessary. They would have to discuss EVERYTHING. The Opposition should not only criticize finished results but also every step of the way. The Opposition's purpose of fault-finding is NOT to derail the majority bloc but to improve it. Fail to do so and you'll end up like Bill Shorten and Anwar Ibrahim.

Popularity contests are not good for this reason. All competition in politics needs to be about competence. Unfortunately, presidential systems don't do that. They only focus on who's popular and one-sided answers. Parliamentary systems would encourage both sides to show what they're capable of. Mistakes from both sides are being checked more often. So why still prefer the presidential system which is just a game of popularity, right?