By Joel B. Belinan
In just 4 months, candidates for the May 2022 local and national elections would be filing their certificates of candidacy. These elections would be an acid test on whether people are satisfied with the way our political leaders handled this pandemic. or would these again be testaments to the stupidity of Filipino voters? This early, all corners of this country are burning from the heat of the coming elections. People are on their toes as if all roads lead to the coming elections. The fact that we will be electing the next president and vice president is doubling the fuel in the politicization of the atmosphere.
The most anticipated debates are on the possible presidential candidates being fueled by the current president’s supporters for Davao Mayor Sara Duterte to run. This is even becoming more interesting with the seeming interest of the only 8 division boxing World Champion Senator Manny Pacquiao to run for the highest office in this country. As everyone is aware, Pacquiao and Pres. Duterte were political allies and in fact, the senator is the president of PDP Laban, the ruling political party.
But as had been the case in this country, political alliances last only as long as their vested interests. True enough it is very obvious that the Duterte supporters are moving heaven and Earth to have the Presidential Daughter run for president come 2022, to the extent that many are even floating the idea of a Duterte-Duterte tandem. Sen. Pacquiao then started opening his mouth against some of the current administration’s failures or weaknesses. And this week the president rebuffed the senator by challenging him to name government offices where corruption is prevalent.
While the President keeps on rejecting the possibility of a Duterte-Duterte tandem at the same time saying that he had been advising his daughter against running for president, the president’s close family friends and allies have been moving from North to South consolidating their forces. Never mind that Sara Duterte keeps on saying that she is not interested but all her movements indicate that in the end, she will accept the nomination of her Panaghugpong ng Mindanao party. And talking to a friend from Digos City, Davao Del Sur, he confirms my suspicion that our Southern Island brothers and sisters will not easily relinquish the current attention they are getting now with a Mindanaoan president. And they even want to get the two highest positions in the government by having Sara run for President and the father as vice president. They are not at all bothered by a possible backlash of a daughter-father tandem. In fact, according to that friend, they are looking forward to the same scenario when the two Dutertes won as mayor and vice-mayor of Davao City during the 2010 elections.
Another acquaintance who hails from Gen. Santos City who happens to be one of the prime movers in the movement for a Sara Duterte for President started attacking Sen. Pacquiao when the Senator started sniping at the president. In an FB post, I tried to gauge the extent of these people’s resolve, and they seem to be well prepared. And this guy happens to be well educated in the social philosophy of the group where I am and, thus, knows the effects of his stand on issues. He immediately said that Sen. Pacquiao is not his type of a possible president. He mentioned how incompetent Pacquiao was as their congressman before, relying only on his boxing popularity and of course his money to be voted into office. Such a comment is not an unbiased assessment knowing that he is directly involved with the Sara Duterte for President Movement. Instead of saying that to him, I said “If in the United States which is considered the bastion of democracy voted for Trump, if in the Philippines we voted Erap (Pres. Estrada) into the presidency, and so with Duterte, why would it not be possible to vote for a kind-hearted world-famous boxer as our president?
Indeed, politics is now like wildfire engulfing this country even if the pandemic continues to run havoc everywhere in these islands, thanks to the people now running our government. The PDP Laban is clearly showing some cracks in its midst with some members starting to side with its president, Sen. Pacquiao.
The opposition is the same. Remnants of the Liberal party and disgruntled former government officials and famous personalities in civil society groups have been moving to consolidate their forces. The recent death of former President Noynoy Acquino is being looked upon as an event that they could exploit in their favor. Sen. Franklin Drilon said it, the former president’s death can re-shape the 2022 presidential race. They are looking at how the people’s sympathy due to the assassination of the opposition leader Benigno Aquino in 1983 partly caused the downfall of the Marcos dictatorship and subsequently the ascension to the presidency of his wife Cory Aquino. Then the death of former President Cory Aquino in 2009 catapulted Noynoy Aquino to the presidency in 2010. Whether the Liberals can repeat such a scenario remains to be seen.
But in the first place, do the Aquinos have a person they could bring to the frontline? There is former Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV and, yes, Kris Aquino the so-called princess of Philippine Showbiz. Whether these two are “good enough materials,” the Liberals might push for Kris Aquino due to her showbiz popularity. And I say that in this country of stupid voters, everything is possible. If such a thing happens we may see a battle among daughters and a son of former presidents, Sara Duterte vs Kris Aquino and Bongbong Marcos who have also been moving for a possible presidential shot.
I am not going to vote nor support any of the three but instead want to see new names in the battle. We have two emerging names, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno and of course Sen. Pacquiao. Sen. Lacson is said to be interested also.
What appears to be a turning point will be whether the Mindanoans can have a single candidate with a candidate for vice president from Luzon and whether there will only be one candidate between Lacson and Moreno. On the Mindanao side, Pacquiao indeed can be a headache for Sara or the other way around.
In the case of Lacson and Moreno, both are said to be counting on the funding from the old Manila Chinese business people or the so-called Binondo Central bank, thus, for both to be running would be really bad.
Is politics 2022 interesting? Maybe but I am not optimistic that a change for the better is coming. I hope I am wrong. I Hope.**(Note: Local Politics next week.)
