Why they jump ship

"Honor is not the exclusive property of any political party."
--Herbert Hoover

By Alex P. Vidal

NEW YORK CITY -- When Marcos fell in 1986, many Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) stalwarts jumped ship and were "rescued" by the late former Vice President Doy Laurel's United Nationalist Democratic Organization (UNIDO).
Some opted to stay behind the "defrocked" party particularly the "Marcos loyalists" hoping for the strongman's political resurrection which fizzled out with his death in 1989.
When Mrs. Aquino took over and became estranged with Laurel, many of them abandoned UNIDO and embraced PDP-Laban, Tita Cory's official party until 2009.
When FVR reigned supreme in 1992, these unprincipled minions hastily formed a beeline to the new ruling Lakas-NUCD party.

REFUGEES

Then came Erap. From KBL, UNIDO, and PDP-Laban, these political grutnols and druggles "fled" like refugees to Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP).
Everyone knows what happened next when Ate Gloria took over: the balimbings, bereft of principle, were again in mad scramble to take oath this time as KAMPI members.
When P-Noy became president, the political pendulum abruptly tilted to the Liberal Party (LP)'s favor in a mass exodus that could dwarf the myth of Israel.
Under the new dispensation, some LP members did not only forsake the party that helped enrich many of them through "pork barrel", they also burned their bridges swearing allegiance not only to President Duterte's PDP-Laban, but to many of the hard-hitting former mayor of Davao City's programs that didn't sit well with their previous political party.
The mass exodus from LP to PDP-Laban appears to be "only the beginning."
Duterte's political party is expected to make a major sweep of the remnants of LP and other coalition parties once his pet program, federalism, takes the center stage.
What does the changing of political bandwagon from one disintegrating political party to another ruling party indicate?

OPPORTUNISM

It's neither a sign of renaissance nor headway. It's pure and simple opportunism.
Philippine politicians fight for survival and can't afford to stay away from the political party of those in power like President Duterte.
Many of these politicians have pending graft and corruption cases in courts. Some of them are engaged in protection racket.
Illegal loggers, smugglers, gambling and drug lords financed some of these politicians during elections. If the sitting president will lower the boom, they will find their way to the doldrums like tottering fools.
If they are "outside the kulambo", so to speak, when the new administration beckons, there are strong chances that their slumbering cases will be expedited; and they might end up snoring in the calaboose.
We will wait when Mr. Duterte makes an exit from the Malacanang and another president will occupy the presidency.
We will surely see the same political merry-go-round similar to what we are seeing today. That's the reality of politics--only in the Philippines.