Villar's choices - Pacquiao, KBL, and Bayan Muna

22 November 2009

"Akala ko Trapo - 'yun pala totoo!"

Yes, that's Sen. Manny Villar.

He's desperate at winning for the presidency spending millions of money already in his political advertisements on radio and TV stations. He also has ads in major broadsheets, as well as, neon billboards painting orange on major streets.

Villar is the president of Nacionalista Party, the oldest political party in the country whose ideology resembles that of the Republican Party of the United States.

Under Villar Nacionalista seems to have lost its direction having no concrete platform of governance.

Then you have Villar trying to expand his clout, of course for his own political ambitions, Nacionalista has accomodated both the extreme rightist and the extreme leftist - two parties that are ideologically incompatible with the old party - the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) of the Marcoses and the communist Bayan Muna.

Villar is trying to win the votes from the right and from the left. He is no principled politician in terms of commitment and civility. Why KBL with all its atrocities during the Martial Law and Bayan Muna with all the crimes of the communists in the Philippines? Is Villar simply reconciling the two or does he have a deeper reason for doing such a political prostitution? Yes, I really mean it - political prostitution especially with Sen. Loren Legarda on Villar's side.

Villar, being a long time political suitor of Legarda, was able to get the lady senator's yes. Legarda, from the Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) of Danding Cojuangco running for vice president under Villar's Nacionalista, is a kind of interesting character - she's like a political prostitute.

Then here comes Manny Pacquiao who has also the guts to run for congressman of Sarangani. Why in the legislative? Does Pacquiao have the capability to craft legislation and engage in debates? Let him remain in boxing - he's expert at punching people. Villar has been an ardent political suitor of Pacquiao.

Is there no hope left for the Philippines to have political parties that fight for their party principles and ideologies? Or do we have today a political party that has accountability to the people - and has members that are accountable not just to their party but also to their constituencies?

We are plagued with trapos - traditional politicos doing the bad things over and over again. By traditional, it means the Pinoy way of patronage and transactional politics; and by trapo, it means that traditional Pinoy politicos are full of filth.

And Villar is a trapo.

Party of the future

19 November 2009

I am distracted by the latest events in the Philippine political landscape. So now, I let distraction pass me by as I prepare a lesson on interpreting poetry because there are more poetic things going on in politics right now.

Gloria Arroyo declared that the merged Lakas-Kampi-CMD is the “party of the future” because it has as its standard bearer a young, dynamic and competent leader in the person of Gilbert Teodoro. Teodoro of course is below 50 years old, therefore, he is very young compared to, let’s say, Methuselah, a biblical character. And the administration’s choice for vice-president is the ‘non-politician’ and a ‘new face in politics’ Edu Manzano who was once a vice mayor of Makati but lost to Jejomar Binay when the actor-politician ran for mayor of the country’s financial district in 2001.

Teodoro is a graduate of De La Salle University, University of the Philippines, and Harvard University. He was a representative of the first district of Tarlac for three consecutive terms from 1998 to 2007 before assuming the office of National Defense chief. He has a wife who is also a representative – his replacement when he’s away.

Edu Manzano is a multi-awarded actor. He joined the US military when he was young – then eventually pursued acting as his career. Arroyo appointed Manzano in 2004 as head of the Optical Media Board (OMB) to fight piracy of copyrighted ‘artistic’ materials. He’s the former husband of governor Vilma Santos of Batangas and of Maricel Soriano.

I remember the campaign line of Gloria Arroyo in 2004 presidential elections that actors were not qualified to be president – because at that time her close rival was the late actor Fernando Poe Jr. But in her desire to remain immune of the cases that will be filed against her when a new administration assumes office, Arroyo and her party are desperate to choose an actor to boost the candidacy of Teodoro. Arroyo said that Lakas-Kampi-CMD is the party of the future – because if – God forbid – Teodoro wins, they will party in the future.

In Philippine elections, voters are always losers. During elections – public attention is always focused on candidates, and never on the voters, that is why there are no loser candidates, they are always winners. If they do not win, they’re cheated. Who are the losers then but the voters who put their hopes on the politicians who spend millions and even billions during their campaigns.

Teodoro – a young politician but is working on an old wine skin. Manzano – a new face in political landscape whose image is as old as the advent of the trapos. If Manzano could not control the little thing between his thighs how could he be able to lead the country as vice-president of Teodoro who’s hiding inside the political dress of Arroyo?

Okay let me sum it all up: Teodoro + Manzano = Arroyo. And the winner is Arroyo because she will remain a phantom president who will enjoy immunity from graft cases promoting the politics of impunity – and the losers – the Filipino people.