Good government never depends upon laws, but upon the personal qualities of those who govern. The machinery of government is always subordinate to the will of those who administer that machinery. The most important element of government, therefore, is the method of choosing leaders.
Law and Governance – The Spacing Guild Manual, Children of Dune
Looking at the current crop of senatoriables and incumbents got me thinking about the 2010 Presidential elections — if Gloria ever lets it happen, anyway. Hopefuls that still have half of their terms left are bound to start making some noise soon, and those seeking office this May will likely base their ambitions on how many votes they can convincingly buy — err — how well they do in the polls.
Then, while I was looking at the list, I almost threw up. Which is funny, because the list was full of crap as it was.
Would we even dare vote, anymore? Vote buying’s even taken a back seat to vote rigging. At least when you buy votes, you’re paying for it. Vote rigging, well, the military and the Comelec takes care of that for Gloria. Elections are important in any democracy, but there isn’t anybody that I believe in, and it’s a damn shame. I miss Raul Roco. He was feisty and mean-tempered, but I believed in him.
I remember when I once thought Michael Defensor was promising, rather than compromising. I never even dreamed that the late Raul Roco’s wife would align herself with Erap. How in the blue hell did Chiz Escudero transform himself from being Erap’s lapdog to being the great brown hope? And what’s up with Noynoy invoking his late father’s name to justify his political ambitions? Hacienda Luicita, Kris, Tessie Oreta… my, how the Aquino name has fallen.
And a lot of them are setting their sights higher, too. After all, the Senate has long been the breeding (festering) ground for future Presidents. Just a few of the obvious ones:
Mar Roxas
My old Consti prof at UP Visayas, Teddy Ledesma — whose class was the only one I attended because the guy is frikkin hilarious and offensive — used to call him “Mario” Roxas. Heee-larious. But back to Mar. Never mind that his family has had their fingers in every pie in my hometown, with a lock on power since his gramps was President, resulting in every political hopeful needing to pay homage to Madam Judy. Never mind how Roxas City and Capiz are a few knights short of a feudal kingdom. Never mind how Roxas City has a shit-awful drug problem that nobody seems to notice. That’s old news that people don’t even notice anymore. How about this, though: how about Mar’s utter lack of testicular fortitude?
Ever heard of taking a stand, mister palengke? I can still remember the guy sucking up to Erap when he came to town. Just once, I’d like to see the guy passionate about something other than winning an election — and DO NOT even mention Korina Sanchez. Although they do belong together, since they’re both full of hot air.
Chiz Escudero
Currently the butt of many emo jokes. Is he really in that much of a hurry? Probably so he can pardon Erap before the guy chokes on his lechon. Is he even old enough? Personally, I don’t trust the guy, Marcos/Erap roots and all, despite the fact that I admire many things about him: he knows how to answer the phone in Filipino. Kaya din nya mag puyat sa umaga. And that forward moonwalk is amazing.
LOL
His media hype aside, Chiz strikes me as the embodiment of one of Ashleigh Brilliant’s epigrams: I either want less corruption, or more chance to participate in it. ‘Nuff said.
Franklin Drilon
As trapos go, he’s not overly so. In fact, I like Drilon. If he ever gives Raul Gonzales a debilitating stroke, I’m giving him “personal hero” status. I applaud his call for GMA to resign, but his stand on the VFA taints him for me.
Manny Villar
Along with Drilon, a moderate trapo. He’s on the short list of politicians-I’m-not-making-a-joke-website-anytime-soon. Mostly because he’s boring. But boring can be good. Just look at Miriam.
Joe de V
Ye gads, is he still that delusional? Maybe he and Chiz can have a who’s-got-bigger-ears contest. Not a Senator, but he’s always been hopeful…
That, dear reader, is by no means a complete list; what do you think? Who’ll run, who won’t? Who should, who shouldn’t?
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15 Comments
I thought you were ambivalent to these things? ;)
Anyway, I disagree with your assessment that Miriam is boring. Hell no, she’s probably the most exciting personality in Philippine Politics right now. If she runs again in 2010, I’ll definitely vote for her.
Aside for Miriam, the only person I’ll trust with the presidency would be Dr. Juan Flavier.
Among those in your list, I think Villar would be the best fit. Unfortunately, his political career has gone south since 2001. He won’t even be finishing in the top 6 in this year’s election.
You forgot about Noli de Castro! I can’t blame you though, he has been very invisible and under the radar. He won’t win in 2010. Nobody will remember him by then. He has been out of television for so long and he is slowly rotating into the “has-beens” bin.
That being said, I think it’s going to be Roxas-Villar vs de Castro- ???? in 2010.
Ambivalent? Me? On the contrary my friend, I am very much far from neutral ;)
I’m ambivalent to Chiz; he has me confused more than any candidate.
I think you misunderstood my comment on Miriam… I noted that Villar was boring, which can be good, looking at other non-boring personalities: Miriam. She’s definitely unstable, untenable, out of whack, bat-nuts crazy… you name it. Do you remember her comments on how people were looking at her “lustily”? LOL. She’s a proven fence jumper with no real core values except for an unreasonably high perception of herself. I can still remember her campaign promise from way back, about putting up a bridge to gap the Bacolod-Iloilo strait.
As for Noli… Mr. Play-it-Safe. See comments on Mar Roxas ;)
Sorry off topic comment. Your custom theme is awesome! I wish I could have one like this soon. Btw, how much would you charge for a custom WP theme like this one? Or maybe you can just give me tips so I could learn how to do this, but I think that’s gonna take a long time. Hehe :D
Positively love the political forecast. I miss Roco too. His wife aligning with the opposition seems to be the strongest move she can make at the moment, seeing that she did make a move at all. Personally, I wish she hadn’t. It may be just me, but my idealist interior screams “independent campaigns” if one is really intent on initiating change. Kaso san ka nga naman kukuha ng pera kung mag-isa ka lang. *raises eyebrow*
What the hell did Noli de Castro do while in office??
@Jaypee: glad you liked it :) Unfortunately I won’t be releasing this theme, but I can share the code for it’s predecessor; it’s basically just a souped-up SimplaZEN with a hint of my previous (Broadsheet) theme, without the sidebar.
@pen: I can relate to your idealism.. and it’s a sad state of affairs — one that most democracies share — when, as the Sassy Lawyer noted, poverty is a disqualification. As for your question:
I can only say… exactly nothing. The opposition hasn’t been able to pick up any steam with their impeachment complaints precisely because no one wants that doofus to be president.
What I meant is how much would you charge me if I hired you to make or design a custom WP layout like this one? Hehe :D
@Jaypee: mejo busy lang talaga ako sa ngayon, buti nga I had a free weekend (my first in months) to do this thing. Pero check your email na lang ;)
Sorry Jorge, I *heart* Miriam. I’ll trust her to be our President. hehe
You’re overlooking one other candidate – Ping Lacson! :) FPJ won’t be around, so unless Erap runs again, it’s going to be smooth runnings for Ping.
@benj: we’ll have to agree to disagree on Miriam then ;) as for Ping… I seriously doubt his chances.
I’d go for Kiko Pangilinan, Alan Cayetano or NoyNoy Aquino in 2010, we need someone who is tough against corruption. Young, Idealistic, someone who doesnt compromise and is willing to fight anyone to protect the interest of the Filipino people (all the fought Erap and GMA) in contrast we should spit out of our political system people like Soto, Oreta, Angaro, Osmena, Puno, …people who are for anyone who is in malacanang…because that’s where the money is…
Hi Joseph; Alan Peter certainly does talk the talk, and I suppose we’ll see. As for Kiko Pangilinan being tough against corruption… I dunno, I’m not so sure about Mr. “Noted” :) As for Noynoy… I suppose we’ll see as well. the next 2 years are crucial. Thanks for droppin’ by!
honestly i’ve kinda given up on this country in terms of anything significantly good happening for the people. These dudes in power know that if they can keep the voting majority uneducated…they can easily be mislead. Hence it’s a twisted downward spiral of unending selfishness for these people in power.
Show me an honest to goodness politician and i’ll show you a flying pig.
Hi! Jorge:
Here’s my take:
After incumbent President GMA, an ilongga-by-affinity steps down –the 2010 presidential fight shall be among ilonggo presidentiables, to wit:
(alphabetical):
*Ping Lacson -Paternal ancestor is from Molo, Iloilo City
*Loren Legarda -Her Gella ancestors are from Antique
*Mar Roxas -Capiznon, puya ni Gerry kag Judy, apo ni Presidente Manuel
*Miriam Defensor-Santiago -Taga Lapaz, Iloilo City
*Manny Villar -Nanay taga Cabatuan, Iloilo kag Tatay taga Tanza,Iloilo City
BTW, inviting you to visit again our newly recon INM blogsite.
All the best…nong dinggol..
hAy Nku kng sbhin man ni FUTURE NEXT PRESIDENT n c Sen.MAR ROXAS C Ms. kkorina Sanchez anu nman ngayon…..Sariling Diskarte lng yan…
I definitely agree with you that the most important element of government is the method of choosing leaders.I enjoyed reading your post as well as the comments.This coming election,hoped for a clean and honest election.Automation may be one of the most significant move the government could take for faster election counting.