No more excitement

“We're all going to change. Otherwise, it's boring.”

—Alicia Keys

By Alex P. Vidal

ALTHOUGH they won’t complain, most of the presidential and vice presidential candidates are now probably suffering from physical, emotional, and mental burnout after a series of lung-busting campaign sorties nationwide for several months now. 

Thus, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) made a wise decision to scrap the remaining town hall debates and will instead air pre-taped interviews of poll candidates.

Although the debates were initially set on April 23 and 24, some of the candidates appeared to be not anymore enthusiastic as they’re now brimming with excitement and suspense for the Election Day on May 9.

Even the public must’ve been bored already by the prolonged debates, which had been repeatedly snubbed by survey frontrunner Bongbong Marcos Jr.

Everyone now seems to be hellbent to expedite the clock if only to satisfy their suspended animation.

Some people are mainly excited to cast their votes with less than two weeks to go, and another debate among the contenders doesn’t excite them anymore; they have heard the same wrangling and showboating in the previous debates.

They have seen and heard some panelists grandstand; they have heard the same questions and monotonous answers; and whatever will transpire in the debates might not matter anymore as most voters have already decided.

The PiliPinas Debates 2022 Series’ concluding event was supposedly scheduled on April 30 and May 1 after it was postponed over payment issues involving private firm Impact Hub Manila, which organized the previous debates. 

-o0o-

Like in the Philippines, the top protagonists in the recent presidential election in France were a man and a woman.

In France, it was a man who beat a woman in a tension-filled runoff.

In the Philippines two weeks from now, will Marcos duplicate the victory? Or will Vice President Leni Robredo reverse the situation?

Days ago, it looked like reelectionist President Emmanuel Macron would be toppled by firebrand populist Marine Le Pen before the runoff, holding the woman challenger at bay by slim margin. 

On April 24, 44-year-old Macron, a centrist, comfortably secured a second five-year term, triggering relief among allies that the nuclear-armed power won’t abruptly shift course in the midst of the war in Ukraine from European Union and NATO efforts to punish and contain Russia’s military expansionism.

Macron spared France and Europe from the seismic upheaval of having Le Pen at the helm, who quickly conceded defeat but still scored her best-ever electoral showing.

Acknowledging that “numerous” voters cast ballots for him simply to keep out the fiercely nationalist far-right Le Pen, Macron pledged to reunite the country that is “filled with so many doubts, so many divisions” and work to assuage the anger of French voters that fed Le Pen’s campaign.

“No one will be left by the side of the road,” Macron said in a victory speech against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower and a projection of the blue-white-and-red tricolor French flag as quoted by Reuters.

He was cheered by several hundred supporters who happily waved French and EU flags.

-o0o-

WE ARE STILL SUPERIOR. Human brains are smarter than creatures whose brains are larger than ours in absolute terms, such as the killer whales, as well as those animals whose brains are larger than ours in relative terms, such as shrews. 

Thus, the size alone does not explain the uniqueness of the human mind.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

Watch your words and demeanor

“Don't flatter yourselves that friendship authorizes you to say disagreeable things to your intimates. On the contrary, the nearer you come into relation with a person, the more necessary do tact and courtesy become.”

—Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

By Alex P. Vidal

In less than two weeks, candidates in the May 9 Philippine election can’t afford to make a major blunder as horrific as the one recently committed by presidential candidate Franciso “Isko Moreno” Domagoso.

This applies also to local candidates, who may now be also losing their patience as the situations turn tension-filled and are now incalculable in many aspects.  

Both the national and local candidates must now watch out for their demeanor and carefully choose their words especially then lambasting their rivals without any apparent provocation, or they will lose major party leaders and key supporters in a hemorrhage or heavy defections.

Even if they are being provoked, the best option is still to maintain a calm mind and continue to soldier on like a professional team player.

Bawal ang pikon, or as what some neighborhood buddies tell each other, “relaks lang ‘tsong!”

Although easier said than done, they must learn to control their emotions as the homestretch is still the most critical stage in any race.

Emotions are running high undoubtedly, especially for those who are lagging behind in the surveys; but whatever pint up outburst and angry snipes may only exacerbate any candidate’s downfall and won’t contribute in any damage control.

    

-o0o-

It’s good that in our culture in the Philippines, we don’t mistreat our elderly and parents in the name of “discipline” or anything that is associated to a lockdown related to pandemic like what the Chinese government is doing to its people.

Authorities in Shanghai have been tightening the enforcement of lockdown measures, as a Covid-19 surge continued in China's financial capital and some of the scenes weren’t good in our eyes. 

We saw on CNN, BBC, and other mainstream media how the seniors were being dragged forcibly and physically assaulted when they put up a resistance in the lockdown measures. 

New measures included placing electronic door alarms to prevent those infected from leaving, as well as evacuating people to disinfect their homes.

Hundreds have been forcibly evacuated from their homes, including the seniors, to allow for buildings to be disinfected.

The restrictions took Shanghai's lockdown into its fifth week now as infected patients and close contacts were transferred to government-run centralized quarantine.

Disinfection measures were further escalated in some of the city's worst-hit areas. This would likely mean some residents were forced to move out temporarily including those who have tested negative. 

Let’s hope and pray the grim scenarios in Shanghai won’t happen in the streets of Manila, Cebu, Iloilo, Negros, and Davao.

 

-o0o-

I had the privilege to visit the Roosevelt House, the former double townhouse of former U.S President Franklin, Eleanor and Sara Delano Roosevelt on Upper East 65th in Manhattan April 21.

Now owned by Hunter College, the house now offers visitors a chance to get closer to a family as unique as the city they inhabited, and to explore the private spaces where some of the most iconic public policy of the 20th century was shaped.

Roosevelt House is an integral part of Hunter College since 1943, re-opened in 2010 as a public policy institute honoring the distinguished legacy of the Roosevelt couple. 

Its mission is three-fold: to educate students in public policy and human rights, to support faculty research, and to foster creative dialogue. 

-o0o-

The institute actually provides opportunities for students to analyze public policy and experience meaningful civic engagement; for faculty to research, teach, and write about important issues of the day; and for scholarly and public audiences to participate in high-profile lectures, seminars and conferences.

We could learn about President Franklin Roosevelt’s rise to the White House after his struggle with polio, Eleanor’s activism for civil rights and human rights, and Sara’s philanthropy.  

It’s in the rooms inside where Eleanor gained the leadership skills to become America’s ambassador to the world and where Franklin created the New Deal to bring America out of the Great Depression.  We could also hear the voices of the Roosevelts and their friends and view Roosevelt memorabilia, photographs, and period documents.

The Roosevelt House still maintains the Neo-Georgian landmark designed by architect Charles A. Platt and learn how Hunter College carries on the Roosevelts’ legacies in the 21st century through research, teaching and public programs.

(The author, is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

Heartaches in two weeks

 

“Our frustration is greater when we have much and want more than when we have nothing and want some. We are less dissatisfied when we lack many things than when we seem to lack but one thing.”

—Eric Hoffer

By Alex P. Vidal

WE can’t blame other candidates in the May 9 Philippine election for acting like children in the classroom of adults. 

In only two weeks, some of them would be hounded by terrible heartaches; they would submerge in the boulevard of broken dreams.

Their combative and irrational behaviors are signs of panic and fear of losing, an enigma that has been with the human psyche since we learned to compete in life’s chariot race.  

Plato’s Allegory of the Cave can best explain the point I’m trying to raise in connection with the forthcoming election.

Sometimes these behaviors surface during unguarded moments, when they mistakenly thought they were acting normally and saying words rationally. 

This can be attributed to stress, anxiety, and burn out after several months of hooping from one region to another all over the archipelago and spending oodles upon oodles of money; the tired and weary mind and body can produce eerie reactions that are verbalized. 

Several months back, we wrote that no candidate in the election believed in defeat. 

Once the candidates began hitting the campaign trail, they thought nothing could stop them from winning. If they lost, they were cheated. No one would admit they were simply bested by their rivals fair and square.  

The realization or the coming to terms with objective thinking has always been late. 

When the mind and body are well-rested, certain chemicals circulate and replenish our internal ecosystem and guide us to accept the reality.

-o0o-

Most Filipinos don’t care at all if Twitter will be owned by a man many critics have long suspected to be the “devil” (I personally reject this absurd “suspicion” and I don’t tolerate it if some bashers of Elon Musk make such south-of-the-border accusations).  

After Mr. Musk made an offer to takeover Twitter, tensions started to run high across Twitter as news of the billionaire’s takeover bid of the company spread across the service recently, with users contemplating what the service could look like under his watch.

Things were reportedly little different inside Twitter. The New York Times reported that “many employees felt rocked by the news over the last 10 days that Mr. Musk wished to purchase the company and reshape it in his image.”

To quell employee concerns, Twitter management recently called an emergency all-hands meeting led by Parag Agrawal, the company’s chief executive, according to five employees who attended and were not authorized to talk publicly, according to the New York Times.

Among the most pressing issues: Was this takeover bid for real? And if so, will Mr. Musk overhaul the service that many of Twitter’s employees have spent years thinking about, tweaking and refining with a painstaking level of care?

We, Filipinos, don’t mind it as long as Twitter has been giving us quality service and quick access to what is happening around the world as part of our daily life as social media addicts. 

-o0o-

IT’S OUR FAULT, ACTUALLY. We were created with flat teeth because we are not supposed to be carnivore; therefore, we can't eat meat but only vegetables. 

But when Prometheus discovered fire and handed the knowledge to mankind, we learned how to cook and thus we started to eat meat--and started to suffer heart attack due to high cholesterol.

Let us eat more vegetables and fruits and less meat. Let us minimize if not totally stop the wanton slaughter of animals.

STAND UP STRAIGHT. This sounds so ridiculously simple, but it's one of the most evidential traits of those women we so admire. Stand against a wall with head, shoulder blades, and heels touching, and buttocks pushed into the wall.

THE SUN IS OUR SKIN'S NO. 1 ENEMY. We should always make sun protection a priority. Let's use a sunscreen formulated for our skin along with our moisturizer. Much of the evidence of aging, rough skin, wrinkles, age spots, etc. are really the result of too much sun.

CONTROL THE EMOTION. A man's bad temper is the number one cause of his downfall.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

A leopard can’t change its spots

“It is not the quantity but the quality of knowledge which determines the mind's dignity.”

-- William Ellery Channing

By Alex P. Vidal

THOSE who think, believe, and expect Senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao to master the King’s English and argue like Cicero just because he became a presidential candidate may be nuts.

Not all presidential candidates are intelligent; not all intelligent are presidential candidates.

And those who ridiculed him in the social media for his disastrous performance in the recent Comelec 2nd PiliPinas Presidential Debates 2022 may be jokers.

Shaming Pacquiao in TikTok and other platforms for “shaming himself” in the debate won’t change anything in as far as his identity as a struggling speaker and his chances of winning are concerned. 

Pacquiao continued to lag behind in surveys whether his critics have succeeded in humiliating him after the second Comelec debate. 

Since when did it occur to everyone that the 42-year-old former 8-time world boxing champion was a good speaker and debater? 

Why express shock and awe when the ex-pugilist failed to satisfactorily answer the question of moderator Ces Drilon during the “live” debate on April 3? 

Did some of us really expect Pacquiao to speak and play with words like JFK or Benjamin?  

Without underestimating Pacquiao, we all know his background; we are aware his primary skills are in the square jungle, not in the rostrum; so why bother whether he can answer the debate question impressively? 

-o0o-

Yes, it’s his fault when he once dared fellow presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to a one-on-one debate when the latter snubbed several past presidential debates.

But it was ostensibly more of a case of hubris for the retired boxer; a grandstanding in an effort to look big even if he is diminutive in the arena of the smart alecks.

The Tagalogs call it “pakitang gilas” or “pang gulat.”

When you’re a midget wanting to be someone not your height, you don’t pick up a fight with a dwarf.

The truth is pitting Pacquiao in a one-on-one debate with the more intelligent Marcos Jr. is like asking Will Smith to slap Hulk Hogan, or coercing Harry Roque to engage Vice Ganda in dirty dancing. 

Pacquiao became international superstar for disfiguring the faces of tough Mexicans as a prizefighter. 

He was never in the class of seasoned debaters and great thinkers even before the presidential election.

Just like a leopard that can’t change its spots, Pacquiao can’t change his talent and reputation overnight from a ring monster to a university lecturer and extemporaneous guru only because he was “allowed” to run for the highest position in the land. 

-o0o-

If radioman Salvador “Jun” Capulot did not file his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) for Iloilo City mayor in the May 9 election, reelectionist Mayor Geronimo “Jerry” Trenas would have joined the eight other mayoral candidates in Iloilo province with no opponents.

An unchallenged mayoral candidate during the election is normally being looked up to in the national level and respected by his peers in the League of Cities in the Philippines (LCP).

But Capulot spoiled the party. Having an official rival in the election means a mayoral candidate will have to shell out campaign funds and “take good care” of village officials.

We can’t blame the likes of Trenas to be pissed off if the likes of Capulot surface during the elections. 

Everyone, including those with no sufficient personal and campaign funds, has a chance to run in a free election. This is the beauty of democracy. 

Even if their chances of winning are nil, the likes of Capulot all over the country can give the incumbents—or the political Goliaths—plenty of trouble mentally, emotionally and financially. 

The eight candidates in the Iloilo mayoral race considered as “sure winners” are: Jett Roxas of Ajuy, Kenneth Alfeche of Alimodian, Suzette Mamon of Badiangan, Nielo Tupas of Barotac Viejo, Mark Palabrica of Bingawan, Janette Colada of Guimbal, Liecel Seville of New Lucena, and Trixie Fernandez of San Enrique.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

   

The homestretch

“Letting emotion get into it isn't part of my game. Letting animosity or a rivalry come into it, that's all for the show.”

—Michael Chandler

By Alex P. Vidal

THERE is no other exciting subject matter to tackle nowadays other than the May 9 presidential election, with barely a month to go. 

Covid-19 has taken a back seat in national discourse, and local politics isn’t so sellable in as far as headlines are concerned due to lack of competitions and tough rivalries.

Each passing day, emotions run high and the race for Malacanang’s top post is getting intense and dramatic with everyone watching on tenterhooks the next move of the main players in the national politics.

The decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to remain neutral, or not to endorse any presidential candidate, is unprecedented. No Filipino president in recent memory has refused to pick a successor to support in the election.

He may have a valid reason: it’s too “risky” to publicly reveal his preference for the next president, especially for someone who is facing a tough battle in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for the controversial killings of drug addicts during his six-year incumbency.

Especially if there’s no absolute certainty that PDP-Laban and Nacionalista Party standard bearer, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., will roll past the surging Vice President Leni Robredo despite the lopsided surveys.

The homestretch in any race really provides the biggest and most exciting sparks, especially if two top contenders are locked in a neck and neck rivalry and both camps aren’t entertaining any possibility of a defeat.

-o0o-

I refuse to support the decision of the Philippine Consulate General in New York to teach members of the Filipino community self defense for free. 

I learned that there was a scheduled “session” two weeks ago in the RP Consulate on Fifth Avenue regarding the proposal by no less than Consul General Elmer Cato to equip us with the basics of hand to hand combat in the light of the recent upsurge of assaults against the Asians, especially Pinoys, in the Big Apple.

My contention is that self defense is useless in the face of clear and present danger; it cannot save the life of any elderly who might be mugged and brutalized by thugs and the so-called “Asian haters” roaming in the streets.

Not all Filipinos can defend themselves from drug addicts and homeless maniacs determined to physically attack them anywhere and anytime in New York. 

An elderly victim, for instance, can’t slug it out toe-to-toe against a superior assailant as manifested by the recent incidents where the attackers were mostly younger, faster and stronger.

The best option is still prevention: avoid places that aren’t frequented by the crowd; do the transactions (grocery, non-medical appointments, ATM withdrawal, etcetera) in the morning and not after sunset; look around while walking in avenues frequented by homeless individuals and drug addicts.

If the attack is inevitable, call 911 or run away (for the younger ones who don’t want to clash with the attackers physically).

Also, we must protect our head and heart with our hands when the mauling occurs after we failed to run away so that we won’t instantly die just in case the attackers are carrying bladed and blunt weapons.

-o0o-

If contending parties in the election—or even the government—will file cases for violation of Anti Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against incumbent public officials running for reelection, it will be misinterpreted as politicking. 

If the cases are meritorious and valid, why not file them before the election period? 

Also, if the government intends to collect estate taxes against any family, why wait for the election period to commence the collection proceedings? It could have been done much earlier when there’s not much controversy attached to the issue.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

  

    

Rowena Guanzon a liability in Robredo’s campaign

“For we must be one thing or the other, an asset or a liability, the sinew in your wing to help you soar, or the chain to bind you to earth.”

—Countee Cullen

By Alex P. Vidal

COMBATIVE Rowena Guanzon has become an eyesore in the presidential campaign of Vice President Leni Robredo, who is surrounded and endorsed by quality personalities from the academe, diplomatic circle, religious sector, lawyers’ groups, showbiz, music and entertainment, youth and civic organizations, overseas workers, and Filipino diasporas. 

Every time the former Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner opened her mouth to unceremoniously lash at former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in particular, Robredo lost some potential voters.

Her recurrent and incessant vitriol and admonishments of Marcos Jr. were already unnecessary and overkill.  

She already shamed Marcos Jr. in her hard-hitting but ill-fated “dissenting” opinion in the disqualification case filed against Marcos Jr. when she was Comelec commissioner. 

Outside Comelec—now as a retiree and a private person—Guanzon continued to lambast the leading presidential candidate like he is a descendant of Pol Pot, who orchestrated the Cambodian genocide.  

Instead of hating Marcos Jr. after listening to Guanzon, some potential Robredo voters were disappointed and pitied the only son of the late former President Ferdinand Sr.

-o0o-

We have always made it clear that we are against any form of character assassination as a method of political campaign in any election.

We can always convince our family and friends to vote for certain candidates by promoting the candidates’ values and character; by echoing and propagating their “impressive” plans and programs for the country and their platform of government; and emphasizing their competence and leadership.

This is peaceful, ethical, moral, decent, dignified, healthy, fair, straightforward, educational, pro-active, and positive campaign. 

We encourage this method and we exhort all candidates to adopt it.

We don’t persuade others to support and vote for our candidates by fomenting hatred, spreading lies, belittling the capability and destroying the reputation of their rivals.

It is toxic, belligerent, unethical, immoral, indecent, indecorous, unfair, impolite, unhealthy, divisive, counterproductive, and hostile campaign. And we reject this style completely.

When negative or toxic campaigners call Vice President Leni Robredo “gaga” or “mango” (dumb) and former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. “magnanakaw” or “makawat” (thief), they don’t help prop up the image of their chosen candidates. 

-o0o-

Let’s be careful with the words that come out of our mouths, especially when we put down or smear others in order to deodorize ourselves or collect pogi points for our candidates “Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.”

The antagonistic behavior and hostile acts produce negative energy and the same energy will unceremoniously pull down the candidates.

Either the negative energy will backfire and damage the entire party, or it will generate multiplying bad lucks in the remaining days of the campaign period.

Both the camps of Marcos and Robredo carry these heavy baggages in their campaigns. 

When their respective endorsers invent false accusations and spit slurs and venomous tirades in TikTok, campaign rallies, media interviews and public fora, they turn off a lot of voters, especially the undecided. 

Tell me who your friends (campaigners) are and I will tell you who you are.

If the candidates want to attract positive energy and good vibration, they must stay away from hateful campaigners like Rowena Guanzon, Apollo Quiboloy, Larry Gadon, to name only some.

They are plain and simple political campaign liabilities. 

-o0o-

OSCAR best actor Will Smith should go to jail for being a brute. 

It’s unbelievable that the police did not arrest him for smacking comedian host Chris Rock during the recent 2022 Oscar telecast.

Smith must be having a personal issue; he definitely needs a psychological evaluation and anger management.

We salute Rock, a really talented and professional entertainment personality who did not lose his composure during the very tense and unpredictable moment.

Rock did not react violently and was able to carry himself calmly and managed to go on with his hosting job like a true gentleman despite Smith’s brutish behavior. 

(The author, who is now based in. New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

I sympathize with Bongbong

“Any mind that is capable of real sorrow is capable of good.”

—Harriet Beecher Stowe

By Alex P. Vidal

IF not for those surveys showing Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. “leading comfortably” over his closest rival, Vice President Leni Robredo, the only son of the late former Philippine President Ferdinand Sr. would be experiencing sleepless nights, if not depression, now that there are strong indications the “yellow magic” in 1986 might be duplicated and repeated by the “pink magic” in 2022. 

Marcos Jr., an intelligent and charismatic man, never lost in the surveys. 

Since last year, he dominated almost all the surveys from the Social Weather Station (SWS) and Pulse Asia, among other polls. Thank you surveys. 

A survey generally is defined as the act of examining a process or questioning a selected sample of individuals to obtain data about a service, product, or process. 

In the May 9 presidential race, the surveys are data collection collect information from a targeted group of people about their opinions, behavior, or knowledge of the candidates.

Common types of example surveys are written questionnaires, face-to-face or telephone interviews, focus groups, and electronic (e-mail or website) surveys.

-o0o-

Election surveys, however, in the age of social media are different.

Shortly after the turn of the 20th century, the Philippines was the first country in Asia to hold elections, and many Filipinos continue to participate enthusiastically in the political process, noted the Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs. 

For a country where suffrage is a right rather than an obligation, data from the International Institute of Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) indicates that a sizable majority of Filipinos vote, ranging from 64 per cent in 2007 to 90 per cent in 1987. 

The International IDEA database also shows that the average turnout in Philippine legislative and presidential elections from 1945 to 2010 was slightly higher (at 78.4 per cent and 77.8 per cent, respectively) than the Asian average of 70.8 per cent and 75.6 per cent, respectively.

Surveys showing he had 52 percent approval rating was more than enough to make Marcos Jr. feel good—if that is the intention of his publicists and spin masters who don’t want to see him down in the dumps.

Again, thank you surveys. At least Marcos Jr. will have something to hold on to in these crucial moments.

-o0o-

But if we place ourselves in the shoes of Marcos Jr., we might be surprised to discover and realize it’s the worst place to be in with barely five weeks before the May 9, 2022 election.   

By imagining the person who beat you for vice president in 2016 as the same person who’s now breathing down your neck, is already torture. 

If she was able to put you away in 2016 when she wasn’t yet in power, what’s the assurance she can’t do it again in 2022 now that she has the complete “resibo” (receipt) as a performing and service-oriented vice president?  

Publicly, Marcos Jr.’s demeanor tells us he’s intrepid, unmoved by the mind-boggling crowd that has been phenomenally forming as sea of humanity in the head-turning rallies of his rival, Vice President Robredo.

Privately—or when he is alone with his wife in the bedroom—Marcos Jr. must be thinking and worrying like the late death convict Leo Echegaray, who wasn’t sure if he would be saved by President Erap’s  last-minute call while waiting for the lethal injection.

What if those phenomenal pink crowds that have recently made headlines for Robredo will translate into actual votes on May 9?

Will the surveys that have almost cemented my “sure” victory still matter? 

Can these surveys still do wonders for me on May 9?

My sympathy goes to former Senator Bongbong Marcos Jr.

-o0o-

After four weeks, five top Russian military generals have been reportedly killed while trying to overrun Ukraine. 

The immoral, unjustified, illegal invasion Vladimir Putin thought would be executed quickly has extended and more misguided and disoriented Russian soldiers have been killed. 

Meanwhile, desperate Russian mercenaries have been killing innocent Ukrainian children, women, elderly. 

The genocide is being monitored and televised in the age of technology. Everything has been recorded for all the world to witness. The war criminals will be indicted for brutal war crimes if they can survive the heroic resistance from the Ukraine people.  

Sooner or later, good will triumph over evil. God works in mysterious ways.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed) 

 

The right to escape from humiliation

“Self-pity comes so naturally to all of us. The most solid happiness can be shaken by the compassion of a fool.”

—Andre Maurois

By Alex P. Vidal

EVEN if we succeed in bringing the horse to water, there’s no guarantee it will drink.

Or, as the exact quote says, even if we bring the horse to water, we can’t compel it to drink.

In the case of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), which sponsored the PiliPinas Debates 2022 The Turning Point on March 19 at the Sofitel Harbor Garden Tent in Manila, it failed to bring Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to water; therefore, there was no chance to make the leading presidential candidate drink.

Of the 10 presidential candidates invited, only Marcos Jr. didn’t attend because he prioritized to be in a rally in Marikina City.

It wasn’t the first time Bongbong dodged a nationally televised “live” debate, so he isn’t stranger to the snub.

His no show in the debate on March 19, however, has elicited adverse public reaction, and many people who didn’t buy his alibi, viewed it as “act of cowardice.” 

Marcos Jr. must’ve been aware debates, regardless of format and length, were always stacked against him; he probably felt like a rabbit being surrounded by wolves ready to scorch or swallow him whole.

In the past debates since the start of the official campaign period for the May 9 election, most candidates always wanted his meat. 

-o0o-

Rivals loved to pick him for a chariot race and he would almost always end up flat on his back. 

The nightmares must’ve traumatized and jolted Marcos Jr. to smithereens, especially when they speared him with searing issues about his family’s unexplained wealth, and when they peppered him about the ghost of Martial Law authored by his late father, former President Marcos Sr. 

To assuage his unhappy fans who wanted to see him tackle the other candidates in the debates, Marcos Jr. might spring a major surprise in the last two presidential debates in this series scheduled on April 3 and 24. 

But if Marcos Jr. will decide to altogether ignore the remaining debates, he is within his rights to do so; his decision won’t place him in a collision course with the Omnibus Election Code. 

There’s no law that penalizes those who skirt the Comelec-arranged debates.

If he deems it unnecessary to clash with his rivals in a “live” televised forum for fear he would only end up mentally bruised and humiliated, or the debates would incriminate him in the many controversial issues attached to his family’s “legacy” that might be raised during the debate, Marcos Jr. has all the reason to escape and protect himself from embarrassment and humiliation.

-o0o-

BECAUSE of too much excitement over big rally crowds and surveys, followers of both leading presidential candidates Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Vice President Leni Robredo think the victory of their respective bets is already in the bag.

Their strong basis? Mammoth crowds in various out-of-town sorties that seemed unstoppable and ready to give Robredo a resounding victory on May 9, and “consistent” survey results showing Marcos Jr. leading by a mile over his nearest rival.

Other contestants, who have nothing to brag about in as far as progress in their campaign is concerned, have dismissed the elements of big crowd and survey dominance to be hogwash. 

The big crowd was made possible because the “pink” has joined forces with the “reds” that infiltrated the rallies, many of them have argued.

The surveys could not be the basis to determine the sure winner because they involved only some 2,000+ respondents compared to the 63 million registered voters who will cast votes, they insisted.

And besides, the real surveys will be on May 9, they added.  

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies.—Ed)

Is Imee laying down the groundwork for protest?

“We have to distrust each other. It is our only defense against betrayal.”

—Tennessee Williams

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THERE is more than meets the eye in the recent yakety-yak of Senator Imee Marcos regarding the alleged breach of security in the Smartmatic, the provider of the automated elections system (AES) and vote counting machines (VCMs) for the May 9, 2022 election.

Pointing only to Facebook posts but without any concrete evidence other than the social media, the sister of presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., made a very serious allegation that a  Smartmatic contractual worker took out an official laptop and leaked its contents.

Did she foresee her brother’s defeat and she is now laying the groundwork to be used as the basis when the Marcos camp files an electoral protest after May 9?

Since nobody has raised the furor until Senator Marcos revealed it in public and in the executive session, she said, after seeing those Facebook posts, some people might speculate that the Marcos camp is now jittery and panicky about the chances of Marcos Jr. 

After May 9, in case her brother will lose, will Sen. Marcos tell us: “I told you so. There’s a breach of security in the Smartmatic. Remember when I warned you all about this before the election?”

 

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She insisted the matter was discussed during an executive session among senators, poll executives, and law enforcement operatives.

"Nasa Facebook eh, makikita ninyo sa isang XSOS na nasa Facebook, nandun nakalatag kung ano-anong impormasyon," said the Ilocos lawmaker, who is head of the Senate Committee in Electoral Reforms. "May mga password, user word. Sabi nila, bulok na at non-usable but nevertheless, the wealth of detail and the depth of knowledge is a little bit alarming.” (It's on Facebook, you will see a wide array of information on the XSOS Facebook. There are passwords and user words. They said the data is old and unusable but nevertheless, the wealth of detail and the depth of knowledge is a little bit alarming.)

She claimed this could effect election results. 

What if Bongbong Marcos Jr. will win and his defeated rivals will invoke Senator Marcos’ casus belli?

 

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Sen. Marcos’ fears are actually valid. Anyone who has seen the alleged Facebook posts from a purported hackers' group called XSOX, might think and feel the same way. 

It so happened her brother is running for president, thus others might accuse her of making a mountain out of a molehill.

But according to a report from CNN Philippines, Smartmatic has clarified that no such breach happened.

"Hindi po 'yun totoo (That is not true)," CNN Philippines quoted Smartmatic spokesman Christopher Louie Ocampo as having told reporters. "Ang Smartmatic po, to be very clear, ay hindi po involved sa (is not involved in) processing or storing of personal data of any voter for the 2022 elections. Anyone can make this document and post it on Facebook and say this can possibly affect the 2022 elections.”

CNN Philippines also quoted Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez as having also expressed confidence that the 2022 election systems have not been compromised.

"From the very beginning, sinasabi natin (we are saying) that Comelec is fully in charge of the elections," Jimenez said, according to CNN Phlippines. "We are confident that even in this particular case, walang naganap na hacking (no incident of hacking occurred) and therefore there will be no impact of that alleged hacking to the election results for 2022."

The National Bureau of Investigation is said to be also looking into the incident.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

Trust Comelec

“Someone who thinks the world is always cheating him is right. He is missing that wonderful feeling of trust in someone or something.”

—Eric Hoffer

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

IF we don’t know how to trust the Commission on Elections (Comelec), we have no business participating in the normal electoral process, especially if our primary motive is to cast aspersions on this major state institution even before the election.  

It’s healthy to doubt and question something that demands logical explanation, but, sometimes, the only way to make something trustworthy is to trust it first.  

Like any other government offices, Comelec isn’t perfect. 

It has its own share of shortcomings and faults. 

If we inject malice in anything the Comelec does, including its mistakes, we will end up suspicious and cynical about everything that it does even if it is orderly and above board.

Even if Comelec will do its job well, it can still suffer from a negative public perception if we treat it as an adversary rather than a reliable agency empowered by law to safeguard our votes and ensure the holding of a peaceful and honest election.

 

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Comelec’s reputation and integrity will depend primarily on its performance and transparency, or how it exercises its power to supervise a nationwide election without being stymied by pressures and controversies. 

How damaging are the accusations of irregularity and criticisms leveled against the poll body, however unverified and unproven, also matters.

If Comelec is the most powerful agency during the election period, it is also the most favorite whipping boy by cynical voters and other Doubting Thomases.

Even if some political parties have become disillusioned and pessimistic, it is important that we continue to uphold and respect the majesty of Comelec’s authority, and have faith in its capability as a chief pillar of democracy during the election period. 

 

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As the election day approaches in the Philippines, there has been noticeably a sudden mushrooming in the social media of spliced Tiktok videos containing a compilation of hilarious scenes mostly involving presidential candidates, Senator Manny Pacquiao and Vice President Leni Robredo.

The intention of those who uploaded the videos was obviously to ridicule and humiliate Pacquiao and Robredo as part of the black propaganda campaign related to the May 9 election.

Did it come from their rivals? 

If yes, then why was Pacquiao, who has not been doing well in the surveys, targeted?

It’s understandable if Robredo would be targeted by the dirty tricks department as she has been one of the two leading presidential candidates who might even pull a major surprise on the day of reckoning.

But why include Pacquiao? What will the authors of those waggish and comical Tiktok videos get if they further embarrass and humiliate the former boxing champion? 

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leni, Bongbong backers hate each other

“All the war-propaganda, all the screaming and lies and hatred, comes invariably from people who are not fighting.”

—George Orwell

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

WITH due respect and apology to the camps of other presidential candidates, it’s now getting crystal clear that the May 9, 2022 race may be a down-the-wire finish between Vice President Leni Robredo and former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

We seldom hear supporters of candidates Senator Manny Pacquiao, Mayor Isko Moreno, Senator Panfilo Lacon, and labor leader Leody de Guzman insult each other intensely in the social media and in the campaign rallies.

It’s always the raucous pro-Leni and pro-Bongbong supporters sinking their teeth against each other in no-holds-barred word war and mudslinging.

The heated rivalry could be catastrophic if both sides were thrown inside a cage while toting hatchets and revolvers.   

In some instances, these supporters from the opposing sides blasted each other like followers of Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin.

Lies and propaganda, psych war, loyalty check, spying, dirty tricks, bribery, treachery and turncoatism are part and parcel of a political combat.

He who loses his cool and tarry-hoots excessively loses both the battle and war.     

Take for instance when pro-Leni supporters bragged about the “70,000 crowd” that filled the Paglaum Stadium in Bacolod City in a recent mammoth pink rally. 

 

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Marcos supporters wasted no time to dispute the “overblown” number claiming the stadium could accommodate only 3,000 people. 

“Liars and idiots,” an angry lady Marcos die-hard screamed in her social media account “liked” by 617 friends.

“Gaga (dumb). You counted only the seats. Most people in the crowd were standing in the football field,” retorted a famous bakeshop owner from Iloilo City and a Leni volunteer.

The lady Marcos die-hard and the male bakeshop owner were former friends and classmates in a university in Iloilo. Their feud started as a “lambingan” or display of tenderness in 2016 during the rivalry of Rodrigo Duterte and Mar Roxas for president.

Their animosity deteriorated after Duterte beat Roxas by a mile. 

“Pareho kamo ni Mar mo mahinhin (You’re effeminate like Mar),” the lady Marcos die-hard ribbed the Leni supporter in their 2016 fracas.

“Ikaw ya pareho kamo ni Digong damol guya kag basura dila (And you’re like your Digong, thick-faced and with a garbage tongue),” replied the male Leni supporter.

It’s so funny that the fiercest quarrel during the election isn’t among the six top candidates for president, but among their impatient and hot-tempered supporters.  

While the contenders have forgotten politics and became friends once again when the election was over, their combative and truculent supporters may have burned their bridges and shattered their friendship permanently.   

 

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Let’s brace ourselves for another nightmare: the soaring to record highs of retail gasoline and diesel prices, which can be felt in many countries across the world since last week, including the Philippines, as a result of the ongoing firefight in Ukraine.

Governments from Brazil to France have reportedly considered pumping up subsidies or trimming taxes to shield consumers from the financial strain.

The moves reflect the economic and political risks governments see in the current energy spike, which has been driven by a rebound in fuel demand since the darkest days of the coronavirus pandemic and supply disruptions in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

Analysts said if prices keep rising, they could take a bite out of economic growth, force lower consumption, and in some cases trigger political unrest. 

Reuters reported that “in past years, rising fuel prices have caused deadly protests in countries including Kazakhstan, Iran and Zimbabwe.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

We must show that we belong

“Accordingly, globalization is not only something that will concern and threaten us in the future, but something that is taking place in the present and to which we must first open our eyes.”

—Ulrich Beck

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

WHILE some of us are busy monitoring—or participating—in the daily campaign activities of local and national candidates in the May 9, 2022 Philippine election, we must not ignore or take for granted the worsening strife in Ukraine now on its third week. 

Although we are not directly affected geographically, we are somehow involved, in one way or the other, strategically as an ally of the United States in the Asia Pacific.

If the escalating rampage of Russian troops carrying heavy artillery and sophisticated hardware would trigger a World War III in the next two to three weeks, which we pray shouldn’t happen, all our preparations for the coming election, less than 60 days away, would be meaningless.

Many of us might ask, “Why should we worry, in the first place? To what extent shall we have to react when the armed conflict is oceans away from the Philippines?”

“Isn’t it enough that we mind our own business first and let Europe settle its own problem?” 

“Isn’t it wise for us Filipinos to focus first on our own domestic woes like the heart-rending fuel price hike, unemployment, pandemic restrictions, and the upcoming presidential election before worrying whether Putin is the modern Hitler?”

 

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As a tiny nation perched on a peripheral area in Southeast Asia, no need to panic actually or belabor our minds for what’s going on in Europe.

But as human beings, we must be aware; we must care; and we must show sympathy and empathy to thousands of people who have been killed and the millions of refugees who now live in terror, horror and desperation outside Ukraine.

As of this writing, the latest jolter was the Russian airstrikes that hit a large military base near the western city of Lviv and killed 35 people and injured 130. 

The area was close to the Polish border. And it happened before the Ides of March.

Each night and day the war between Russia and NATO-backed Ukraine drags on, brings us closer to World War III. 

I have been personally monitoring the events as they unfolded and the questions that have always bothered me were:

1.   What if when we woke up the next morning, bombs have started to explode on the surface of NATO territories? A lizard biting an elephant is not news. But when an elephant acting to trample a fellow elephant, a real tremor will unfurl. The “jolter” I just mentioned was clear and present worrisome.

2.   What if Russia suddenly will use biological or chemical weapons as the invaders barrel their way into the much-guarded capital Kyiv?

3.   What if Vladimir Putin, now isolated from the rest of the world save for China, will commit hara-kiri and unleash the nuclear missiles, God forbid? Plus other possibilities.

We aren’t yet safe, in truth and in fact, if we take these fears and possibilities into consideration, which we all hope won’t take place.

 

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IF I were reelectionist Iloilo City Mayor Geronimo “Jerry” Trenas, I would not skip the scheduled “live” public debates sponsored by radio and TV networks where I was cordially invited even if I perceived my rival to be “patsy.”

In that manner, I could show to both my critics and supporters my professionalism, that I treated any individual with dignity and respect even if we didn’t belong in the same layer professionally, intellectually, economically. 

It’s also one way of showing my humility and cooperation to the dynamics of the electoral system. 

I could lose nothing but earn the respect of my critics.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)