LAKAS-KAMPI-CMD standard bearer Gibo Teodoro: Problematic as always. (Photo credits: http://gibo.ph)

Well, everyone else is doing it. We've seen the benefits.

Instant "pogi' points. Popularity surge. Emotional pandering. Bolting out of political parties are the "in" thing these days. And anyone who wants to have a piece of this rave must now abandon the conventional for the radical.

The saints are marching

It now appears to be a race for the "holiest of holies".

Newly-wed Senator Mar Roxas was inducted to the "Statesman" hall of fame by giving way to Senator Noynoy Aquino.

Noynoy Aquino has become "morality in the flesh" -- the epitome of righteousness by "going on  a retreat" and well, quite simply, just by being a son of martyred parents.

There are also the "lesser saints" Mayor Jejomar Binay and Ed Panlilio, both withdrawing presidential bids to give way to Noynoy. Kiko Pangilinan -- initially intent on running for Vice President has also given up on his dream in favor of Mar.

Then there's DILG Secretary Ronnie Puno -- expected to run in tandem with administration party LAKAS-KAMPI-CMD -- who also announced his withdrawal from the race a few weeks before the filing of COCs begin.

A Prophetic Villar

Senator Manny Villar was right all along when he said (in a casual group interview) that it's way to early to tell who his opponents would be. He said many would either slide to a lower position, settle for reelection or withdraw from the race altogether. Continue reading →

Popularity: 2% [?]

Photo by Max (Tj)'Tis the season of surprises.

As the 2010 elections draws near, the turn of events have been pretty surprising.

Roxas withdraws from presidential bid, Aquino announces his, Roxas slides to veep. The so-called dark horse Teodoro gets chosen by the admin party as standard bearer(well, almost officially, that is), much to the frustration of Fernando who's been salivating for the presidency for God knows how long. Pangilinan withdraws from VP bid, Binay withdraws presidential bid, Escudero and Legarda postpone announcement of intentions to run, Erap announces his, Binay runs VP alongside Erap, Gordon remains mum, De Castro gets bad press and becomes invisible -- as if he isn't already (and will probably return to broadcasting instead) ,Villar, like the Energizer bunny just keeps going and going and going. Legarda gets courted by own party NPC, the admin party and Villar's  Nacionalista. Legarda turns down admin party Lakas-Kampi-CMD and limits choice between the other two.

And now, DILG Sec. Puno announces his withdrawal too. So much for those wasted infomercials about how the DILG has increased the number of policemen and has successfully installed women's desk in all of the police stations in the country.

DILG Secretary Ronnie Puno withdraws 2010 VP bid. Genuine love of country? Or a classic ploy for upping his image? You be the judge. (Photo: www.dilg.gov.ph)

His reason, albeit a little too noble for a public official of his stature, resonated of authenticity -- or at least, that's what it looked like, if we are to believe what he says in this Inquirer article, and I quote "I would like to announce, today, that I am withdrawing my bid to be the vice president of the Republic of the Philippines to remain with the people that I’ve worked with for the decades past; in order to remain with the people in the public service who have shown me, by their example, what it means to be a public servant; who have made my life more meaningful and I know will continue to give my life meaning in the months ahead..”

Secretary, if you're for real, and I hope and pray you are, then I'd be damned and this entire country will be as well -- for immensely ironic as it may seem,  by the time we realize who deserves our vote, we have been deprived of the chance to vote for them.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Warning: Promises Never Kept!

Photo by שאול חנוכה Shaul HanukaWhat's in it for me? I'm sure you've been asking that eternal 2010 presidential elections question for God knows how long. And unfortunately, you haven't been getting the answer/s you want -- that is, if you've been getting answers at all.

We turn to forums as our means to bridge the gap between what we know (what he hear on public radio, see on TV, read in the papers, online, even from friends) and what the presidential candidates are trying so hard to tell us. But somehow, it just isn't enough.

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First: A Few Thoughts On Communication and Forum cum Debates

I can imagine the frustration of someone who believes that he/she has a wonderful idea in mind but just couldn't find a way to get that message or idea across, as simple and as crisp as the one that he/she has in mind.

Can you now imagine how hard it is to be asked mostly general questions, give the best answer you can come up with and pack it in 2-3 minutes while people expect you to say something awesome or at least be right the whole time? The entire nation, if not the world, watching you as you open your mouth, and you watching the look on their faces at every pause, fishing for hints of contentment or dissatisfaction?

You see, communication takes effort. It is not an activity for the lazy (actually, no activity is ever worthwhile to the lazy). You are overflowing with ideas that can actually save mankind from destruction but the world just wouldn't listen to you just because a)they have now become prejudiced. Politicians = scammers. Politics = scam. Promises = *sorry, can't write the word* or; b)your sentences somehow sound incoherent anyway or; c) you are just plain boring.

And so unless our politicians are all born with that gift of communication and public-speaking charm, we may well be throwing the viable candidates in exchange for the rotten ones -- all because the viable ones don't know how to communicate. What a waste that would be.

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What exactly do we want from our candidates?

If you clear the festive campaign air we breathe now, remove all the foot-tapping jingles, the superfluous statements, the cry-me-a-river drama of it all, you will see that only one thing will remain -- the universal human pursuit for CHANCE. As the soda crackers commercial of Robin Padilla clearly puts it, "Dahil bawat Pilipino, kailangan lang ng break." (Because every Filipino just needs a "break").

Yes, you read that right. It's not really world peace that we're so hung-up on (but of course that's a given) or winning the lottery (okay, wait, maybe a little of that..) or that fancy house, fancy car, fancy everything.

While we all want to get rich and rule the world, foremost on our agenda is to get that "break" -- that chance.

So to all the 2010 election presidentiables/candidates, take note: The Filipino people does not need your promises. We are not in need of alms or a measly welfare coupon. And unlike the cliche that we got used to, we are not so much in need of hope either. Promises get broken. Alms get spent. And hope? Hope is too abstract for the empty stomach to digest, much less for the jaded brain to comprehend.

And yes, we don't need your pity. Many of us 90M+ Filipinos are able-bodied and optimistic people -- ready to take on anything given the necessary tools. We are ingenious. We are smart. We are hardworking. We are generous to a fault. We have everything necessary to succeed, to excel, to soar, or at the very least, to survive.

But there is one thing, dear presidentiables, that we cannot create -- even with this artistic and equally strong pair of hands. We can weave baskets, but we cannot create a market for it. We can invent machinery but we cannot create corporations that will use it. We can draw wonderful images, but we cannot make fantasy become reality. We can cultivate land, grow all produce a-plenty, but we cannot buy land. Or at least, dear presidentiables -- at least, not yet.

What we need, what we really, really need right now is CHANCE -- a chance to live a decent life at least and a progressive one at best.

A chance to a decent job. A chance to a decent education. A chance to live and not just exist.

Give us chance and we'll do wonders with it. You'll see.

But before that, we know that the heavy burden rests once again in our hands. It is ironic then that before we get that chance we so ardently wish and need, we must first give you yours. It is an "all-in" gamble, scary, we know. After all, we are not only risking our own lives, but the lives of our children and theirs. But unless we take a chance on you, our own chance would left to chance. And mind you, that's not a chance we are willing to take.

So presidentiables, take heed: We are watching you. Very closely. We are willing to give one of you that chance, but that chance comes at a steep price. We will give you your chance in exchange for our own. It is a chance you will be duty-bound to give us. And should you fail, just imagine what a person with a jaded mind, an empty stomach, strong, skillful  hands and a broken heart can do. Multiply that by 90M+. You get the picture?

Now, that -- that is what this election is all about. I hope you realize by now just how serious a problem you're getting yourself into and just how crucial the role you are about to play. So play nice,  and play well. Because regardless of your reason for running for President, you will be hounded, all 6 years of your term, by 90M+ people in the undying human pursuit for chance -- for a "break".

PBA09n173p8o

Popularity: 1% [?]

Photo by looking4poetry

You guessed it right, dear. Manuel "Manny" Villar. No, it's not the "Itik" commercial that plays several times a day during "primetime" Philippine TV. No, it's not the "OFW assistance" commercial that played regularly months before You guessed it right, dear. Manuel "Manny" Villar. No, it's not the "Itik" commercial that plays several times a day during "primetime" Philippine TV. No, it's not the "OFW assistance" commercial that played regularly months before "Itik". No, it's not because he's impossibly rich. No, it's not because I lived 15 years or so of my life in Las Pinas City. No, it's not the hair. It's not his eventual resignation as Senate President following that road budget "insertion" controversy. No, it's not the consistent double digit figure in polls conducted by SWS Surveys or Pulse Asia or whatever.

Villar to me is a viable candidate for President in the upcoming 2010 Presidential Elections (let's cross our fingers that we all get to vote on that day, and that we actually have the chance...I'm sure you are all aware of the possibility of No-El in the context of a Cha-Cha via Con-Con or Con-Ass...haha..what amusing shortcut terms..). While a lot of people might say that Villar is banking on the merits of having risen from poverty to riches to fame and power, let us also remember that it a fact that we can't really argue with. So let's give him that. And speaking of surveys, November 28 - Dec 1, 2009's SWS Survey re: "Choices for President in 2010":Villar clearly shows a steady ascend at 27%. He may not be at the top yet, but hey, it's workable.

De Castro - 31% --- Sure, this is high. But where's he gonna get the money? And if he does "find" funding, how's he gonna pay it back?
Legarda - 28% -- Oh, please.
Villar - 27% -- Villar for President in 2010!
Escudero - 19% -- Nah. Too inexperienced. Stay at the Senate please.
Lacson - 14% -- Too involved with self.
Estrada - 11% -- His time has come and gone.
Roxas - 10% -- For personal reasons, I would have to say "no comment"
Binay - 2% -- Not a chance.
Bayani - 1% -- Ditto.

As of now, I don't have much time to expound on this idea or the reasons by which I arrived at this decision or choice. But, rest assured, when I do have the time, I shall write about it in full passion and conviction. For now, I leave you with this rather dry and short post. I am sorry if this will leave you hanging -- bewitched, bothered and bewildered. While it's a lame excuse for you to come back again and visit this blog for that "comprehensive post on the decision to vote for manny villar for president come 2010", I know that the loyal reader that you are will never let me down. And well, of course, you can expect the same from me. So, come back soon, eh? *hugs*

Popularity: 4% [?]

Photo by 19melissa68

As if the CARP issue and the alleged continued corruption are not enough to contend with, DAR is now faced with another issue of headline material -- this time, a story that if only for the news sources that covered it and the blogged story of the family member who was there with the victims, you'd seriously think this story is merely lifted from a movie scene or a usual mauling news printed in the inside of tabloids. And although the DAR chief didn't have direct participation, he stood there watching the events unfold as if a bemused spectator. Continue reading →

Popularity: 1% [?]

This guy Joma just won't give it a rest. Miles away from where we are, he is still "trying" to cause trouble here. And I say "trying" because from what I know, his "all-talk, no-show" antics have proved detrimental to the once-powerful group he "once" lead. Twenty years in exile and he hasn't figured out (just yet) what he's supposed to do for this country if he is indeed hell-bent on achieving that oh-so-big word called "change". Continue reading →

Popularity: 1% [?]