First, before any one wants to play the 'racist' card here, I married a Filipino. Fantastic girl.
As for the last election, I know quite a bit about it. I was there and not just as an observer. I was asked to consult some of the governors in the race. I was there before, during and after the so called fraud in the certification. The rigging was not only in the machines but when the vote tally's were added up it was done by computer on memory chips. The results were emailed over to Manila then backed up by the memory cards. The emailed results were fake, the memory cards were then modified or outright replaced with ringers then those were sent over for certification. There were duplicate cards made up in advance.
Another rig was suit cases of cash flown in from China. Literally large suitcases that came in as luggage by Chinese and the suit cases were skated in by customs. Some were spotted and a few were reported but only a fraction. Vote buying was so bad some areas were paying over 4,000 peso for a vote. That to my knowledge going back to when Marcos was in power, as being a record.
The bulk of the Filipino population do not think beyond the 4,000 peso. Before the election the Barangay Captains are out negotiating price per vote. People are in the streets and the sari-sari talking in anticipation of that bribe and what they are going to do with it. Lets see, there is the cock fights, there is San Miguel, some barbie-q on a stick and a few karaoke songs. Maybe an hour with a girl, four hours at that price. That is what they think when elections come. Not the future of their country or their own lives.
Not going into details, but, China purchased the last elections with pure cash and to an eager population.
With all that is going on now, travel is impossible, local officials are shit heads and as dumb as a rock over monkey see monkey do beliefs about a highly questionable pandemic. I can not imagine any reason to get involved in the PH any more. I don't. Sorry my friends and relatives are stuck there.
