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Hello there, everyone! I invite you to join me online via live audio-streaming and liveblogging, together with my other fellow bloggers as we talk politics and more with survey-leading Presidentiable, Senator Manuel "Manny Villar" tomorrow at Bonifacio High Street.

As of this writing, I have yet to find out the names of other bloggers who will be there with me. I will let you know tomorrow as I liveblog the conversation/interview.

As you may well know, I am an avid supporter of Manny Villar in his bid for the presidency come 2010 so I wouldn't dare pass up this chance of meeting him face to face to ask him some of my burning questions. I do hope this coffee session eventually cement my conviction of rooting for him and campaigning for him to my family and friends who are yet to make up their minds on who to vote for.

You are enjoined to participate in the discussion by sending in your comments through chat, voting in the polls and tweeting using hashtag #villar2010.

Join us and make your opinions matter! Make your vote count! Let your voice be heard!

Popularity: 2% [?]

Photo by Le Montage
Drum roll, please...

SWS 3rd Quarter Survey Results:

De Castro - 29%

Villar - 28%

Legarda - 26%

Malacanang, as early as now, eyes several other people as successors to PGMA -- Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, Senator Richard Gordon, Chairman Bayani Fernando of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, and Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte. These people are being considered aside from VP Noli de Castro who has been enjoying wide popularity in recent SWS surveys.

And, as early as now, I think it doesn't take a genius to see that their additional choices don't have a slight chance in hell at winning the presidency even with Malacanang's so-called "political machinery". In a country as disillusioned as ours, popularity is still a major factor for winning. And while popularity isn't everything (as proven by the many "celebrities" who lost in their quest for electoral positions in the previous elections), it is still undeniably a major consideration or shall I say, a significant determinant of a candidate's winnability. Continue reading →

Popularity: 7% [?]

The situation in Mindanao seems to worsen by the day if not by the hour. It is clear to us that peace talks have gone completely out of hand, thanks to the bitter MILF renegade group. Just when we are ready to talk peace some self-righteous group whether from the government or from the MILF manages to screw things up and deliberately steal the spotlight. And well, I must say they have done so perfectly. Now, they have our complete attention and have diverted it to "firefighting" the escalating war in Mindanao. What lucky bastards! Now, it's not just the "technicality" of the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity on Ancestral Domain (BJE MOA on AD) that we have to worry about -- we now have to manage a fight on the side. Can things get any worse than this? Continue reading →

Popularity: 1% [?]

Photo by erichews [Now with 100,000+ views!]

I've written about early campaigns disguised as product endorsements in my One Political Filipino blog, which I haven't updated in ages -- thanks to my growing disbelief in Philippine politics which started months before this. Many things have changed since that post and the political scene has been reshaped somehow by influential events of late. So, I felt it was a good time to make a somewhat updated version of that post although not entirely dwelling on the "early campaign syndrome". Incidentally, today's news about pulse asia survey has sparked my interest in this topic, hence this post.

Let me begin by saying that until now, no matter how seemingly long ago the campaign period has started, I have yet to decide who to vote for. And although I have been having thoughts on "campaigning" for a specific candidate, however insignificantly it may affect other people's opinion and thereby "sway" them into voting for my choice, I must say that I am, up to this point, still undecided.

The Pulse Asia Top 5 for Presidentiables:

De Castro -- 22%

Estrada -- 16%

Escudero -- 14%

Legarda -- 14%

Villar -- 12%

Although I don't really like surveys because they somehow appear speculative, I know for a fact that these are backed by solid data. And yes, most likely, De Castro might win. I have nothing against De Castro winning. It's just that, I do not see him bringing anything new to the table. I have this personal speculation that a De Castro win will only mean another PGMA win -- a continuation of a PGMA administration. There are obvious advantages and disadvantages to this as I see it. The advantage being, whatever PGMA has started, VP De Castro will most likely (if not definitely) continue or finish. That's good because infrastructures and projects conceptualized in PGMA's time will be accomplished because De Castro will have no reason to prove PGMA wrong. He is, after all, on her side. The disadvantage, however, will be this: People in government appointed during PGMA's time will probably stay there. I doubt seeing major changes in the faces at Malacanang athough of course, some may be added because of "you-know-why" reasons. How can we start anew if these people don't get replaced? Those same people who have given us headaches will continue to plague us with more problems. Not good. So a De Castro win isn't exactly my preference.

Now, Estrada on second place, I say OMGWTFBBQ? Give it a rest, people.

Escudero on third is not news to me. He is one congressman who gained so much popularity just by being anti-PGMA. Everyone likes a rebel. Everyone likes someone who has the guts to challenge authority in such a charismatic way. What's news to me, however, is the idea that he is running for president. I mean, hello? Are you sure he is running? He's only been Senator for how long? I think this is such an ambitious endeavor. At least, at this time. Let the guy prove himself first. And people who love Chiz, please. Don't throw a half-baked candidate in there just because he looks promising as president. If he ever runs, I think he will lose. Remember Loren? Rushing to presidency or vice-presidency has its problems. And I hope Chiz sees that early on. I think he needs to take his time. He is a young idealist. But he needs to prove us all that there is more to him than charisma and idealism. And the only way to do that is to stay longer in the Senate.

Legarda, as I see it, has no chance at presidency. If she were to run for VP, she'd easily run away with it. She has already made the mistake of rushing for VP before, in which she lost, even after an expensive recount where she spent her own money. This will be a repeat of that if she pushes for presidency.

I was born and raised in Las Pinas City so I have a tendency to like Sen. Manny Villar (who has been our Congressman for many terms) -- and I'm not denying that. Living in Las Pinas at that time was pretty satisfying except for occasional traffic frustrations along Casimiro. The city has been recognized as "The Cleanest City in Metro Manila" for many consecutive years and looking back, I felt very proud being a "Las Pinera/Las Pinero". Progress was good and steady in those glorious days and I was happy to witness that. It seems unlikely that Villar will win, though.

However, my vote for 2010 will not go to a candidate that I merely like or can associate myself with. I resolve to vote for someone who I think is capable of moving the country forward. I resolve to vote for a candidate whose values and principles I admire and respect. I will vote for someone who knows how to take sides on issues and doesn't give me "safe" answers in the interest of his political ambition. I will vote for someone who stands by his countrymen even if it means being disowned by his political party.

They say, "good intentions don't always count", and there are many occasions that I actually believed this to be true. But times have changed. Now, more than ever, the challenge to the succeeding President is tougher than ever. We will be needing somebody with a heart -- yes, someone with "good intentions". I believe that Filipinos are very smart -- so much so to our own disadvantage sometimes. We've seen many smart people come and go in the government and yet, many years after, there doesn't seem to appear any significant change in the system or the people who run it. There is no true change. And that is because, everyday, less and less people care. Less and less people carry good intentions in their heart. We have a serious scarcity of people of this sort. Almost extinct, if you ask me.

So, now I wait, as I have always done in the past. I will be as vigilant as can be. And decide slowly but surely on who to vote for. There's no rush. I tell that to myself. Choosing a leader takes time and effort. I have only one vote so I can't afford to lose it , much less, let it go to waste. I will bide my time and make sure I only vote for that someone who have the country's best interest at heart, because in this country festered by rampant corruption and politicking, I'm sure that "good intentions" count, big-time.

So, who will you vote for President in 2010? Do surveys affect your voting decision this early?

Popularity: 14% [?]