The second one is the Noynoy supporter who, at least, tries to think things through. They support Noynoy not necessarily because it is the fashionable thing to do but because they really thought hard about it. Their only problem is they think more with their “heart” instead of their brain. Most of them also have a child-like belief in elves, dwarves and orcs.

The third one is the supporter who have been fooled into believing that a vote for any other candidate other than Noynoy is a wasted vote. Let’s call this supporter the Wasted One. This type of Noynoy supporter claims that he does not necessarily believe Noynoy is the best choice but because he has been brainwashed into thinking that a Noynoy defeat equates to a Villar victory he will just go for the Yellow One, their so-called lesser evil.

I no longer want to focus on the first two types because for all intents and purposes they are  already a lost cause. There’s no point in trying to sway them unless you believe trying to get a cult member to give up his beliefs is worth it.

I want to pay more attention to the third type, but before anything else I’d like to get one thing out of the way. I’d like to say that those who fall in this category are worse than the first two. Many of them are liars pretending to be new converts when in fact they are paid hacks long involved in the Yellow Propaganda Campaign. As for the few genuine new converts, well, the same thing but only because they have it in their heads that by rooting for Noynoy they’re being patriotic.

Voting for Noynoy as a means to prevent a Villar victory is a foolish idea based on a number of stupid assumptions — that this election is a two-way race between Noynoy and Villar and that the survey results churned out by Pulse Asia and Social Weather Stations can be trusted.

The third type of Noynoy supporter should be made to realize that this is not a fight between good and evil and that Noynoy is nowhere near being the “good” he and his followers make him out to be.So what if Noynoy promises he will not steal? What about the other thieves in the government? What about the opportunists-in-waiting?

Obviously, followers of the yellow plague think corruption happens only at the high levels of government. Let’s be realistic. Clean politician is still an oxymoronic concept.

The Wasted Ones should realize that they’re not doing the country any favor by supporting a candidate who has no real track record and solid plan for the country. It would be better for them to just choose among the candidates with the best qualifications. That should not be difficult at all. Just exclude the real nuisance candidates namely Joseph Estrada, Villar and of course Noynoy.

ABS-CBN’s Harapan: The Tandem Presidential Debate has been canceled. The surprising and unexpected reason: several candidates for president and vice president have either backed out or declined to participate.

This is shocking news. Who would have thought that the likes of Senators Noynoy Aquino, Manny Villar and their equally esteemed running mates would find it not worth their while to join a no holds barred debate? Well, to be fair to Villar’s running mate Senator Loren Legarda, her reluctance to participate is understandable considering the beating she got  last time.

(excerpts from a newsbreak.com.ph report)

• In a surprise result, Sen. Loren Legarda did poorly in ABS-CBN’s Harapan: The Vice-Presidential Debate, based on feedback from citizens who participated in the debate.
• Legarda failed to get 50% or more in most of feedback from the audience through the WARS.  She was asked about her experience in governance, her plans on improving the state of education, as well as on her pet themes, environment and climate change.
• Aside from doing poorly in the WARS, she also did badly in the on-line poll through abs-cbnNEWS.com chat with netizens, http://abs-cbnnews.com/harapan. The poll asked the question: Who is the most believable among the candidates in the Harapan debate?

It’s just too bad the debate scheduled for this Sunday will no longer push through. It would have given us yet another glimpse into what these people are really made of. I would have enjoyed watching Villar deflect questions about the C-5 controversy. And, of course, who would want to miss the Great Yellow Hope in action. I wonder how he would have fared against his cousin former defense secretary Gilbert Teodoro or Senator Richard Gordon.

By the way Teodoro was among those who backed out. He claims he has already saturated forums and debates. Well, at least he wasn’t being a jackass about it not like Villar who gave an excuse that can only be described as pamimilosopo.

(excerpt from an abs-cbnnews.com report)

Villar and Legarda said they already committed to visit their supporters in Bicol on the same date.

Villar added they did not back out because they never confirmed their participation.

Now, to be fair , I should also identify those who were all too willing to attend the debate. In no particular order, the Walang Pakisama (sa mga naduwag) are former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr., evangelist Bro. Eddie Villanueva, former MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando and Senator Richard Gordon.

The gall of those 4 candidates for trying to re-invent the wheel. Don’t they know most Pinoy voters respond better to song and dance routines than speeches on the economy, population growth and other serious stuff? They should ask Senator Aquino. Better yet they should get lessons from him on the finer points of campaigning without really trying. After that they could also ask him to provide tips on how to cover all the bases. 

Oh, I almost forgot. Gordon is now part of that elite group of candidates who think they’re cute. He now has a music video of his own.  Before you watch it be sure to prepare yourself to be disappointed because Gordon didn’t really sing or dance on this video.

I’m sure you were also surprised the first time you watched that. I too  never imagined Moymoy Palaboy as celebrity political endorsers. But that shouldn’t really surprise anyone anymore. Ater all we’re talking about Pinoy-style elections.

The January 22-26 survey showed that 70% of Filipinos had much trust for Villar, compared to 64% for Aquino.  Eighteen percent of voters said they were undecided about Villar while 23% said the same for Aquino. Both candidates had the same percentage of voters  (12%)  saying that they had little trust for the two candidates.

Aquino and Villar were statistically tied in the last presidential survey conducted by Pulse Asia last January 22 -26. Thirty-seven percent of Filipino voters said they would vote for Aquino in the presidential election while 35% said they chose Villar.

I do not hide the fact that I’m not a fan of election surveys. I strongly believe they are manipulated in one way or the other. However, I’m making an exception with this survey because I like how it takes away from the Aquino camp’s apparent claim that their candidate is the only trustworthy candidate. I wonder how the yellow horde will react to this.

By the way, if I were a believer of SWS and Pulse Asia surveys I’d probably say this is a development for the simple reason that it shows that not all Filipinos are buying Noynoy’s honesty schtick.

But then again, I am an anti-election survey kind of guy so I’ll stick to my stand that this or any other election survey out there are not to be believed. More importantly, they should not in any way serve as a basis for how we should vote.

In the first place, how can anyone really tell that this or that candidate is trustworthy? Do Noynoyistas and Villaristas have intimate knowledge of the real character of their favored candidates? Are they possessed with extra-sensory powers they are able to see into the hearts and minds of these politicians both of whom refuse to articulate exactly how they will fulfill their respective campaign promises of ridding the government of corruption and putting an end to poverty.

The truth is the respondents of this Pulse Asia survey (if indeed they do exist) just followed their gut feel. Nanghula lang sila. In all likelihood they will do the same come May 10. Good luck with that.

But that is not the most damning evidence of Noynoy’s misplaced pride. With the latest surveys showing a reduction in his popularity rating, the senator now finds himself facing the reality that people’s perceptions can change. However, being the proud son-of-Ninoy-and-Cory that he is, the senator simply dismisses that even though it is a likely explanation for his ratings drop. Noynoy attributes it instead to his closest rival’s supposed advantages.

(excerpt from inquirer.net report) “I am not surprised with this turn of events,” said Aquino, reading a prepared statement at a press conference Wednesday. “First, our opponents have had a long head start in this campaign. And while I diligently perform my functions as a legislator, the others are practically campaigning fulltime, neglecting their mandate with those, who entrusted them with their votes,” he said. Aquino also criticized Villar’s “unprecedented and sustained ad spending in all forms of media and the unrelenting and increasingly below-the-belt and baseless black propaganda” against him.

In fairness to Noynoy, the moneyed Villar did start his campaign earlier. There’s also no denying that the former senate president is armed with a seemingly unlimited supply of advertising funds. However, it also cannot be denied that as an excuse this is as flimsy as it can get.

Villar did start campaigning earlier because, unlike Noynoy, Villar knew what he wanted and had the guts to take action. Of course, Noynoy and his supporters could say that he never craved power and was even reluctant to run for president. That’s just good old media spin. The truth is Aquino was never reluctant. Show me a reluctant opportunist and I’d believe that.

The problem with Noynoy is he now believes his own press releases. His overestimation of his qualities has blinded him to the reality that he is not impressive at all and people are beginning to take note of that. Attributing the fluctuations in his survey ratings to the imagined maneuvering of other candidates simply shows an apparent inability to consider his own shortcomings.

True to form, Noynoy even goes as far as dragging the Arroyo administration in his blame game.

(excerpt from gmanews.tv report) The Arroyo administration and the camp of Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. are forming an “unholy alliance” for the May 10 elections, Sen. Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III insinuated Wednesday. Aquino made the statement after Pulse Asia released its latest survey results showing a further drop in Aquino’s ratings while Villar continues to inch closer to him despite the controversy hounding him in connection with the C5 road extension project.

I sure hope the good senator or any of his handlers would be mature enough to accept that perhaps the threat to the Aquino campaign is internal not external. And, if I may suggest, presenting a genuine platform might help Noynoy regain lost ground and destroy the perception that he doesn’t have a clue how he will lead this nation. I’m not counting on it though.

I hope I’m wrong but it seems Noynoy’s only interest is his “winnability.”

(quote lifted from gmanews.tv report) “What should not escape all of us is that I still lead the surveys—from the time I declared my candidacy to this day.

“Eh kasi nakakainis eh… Eh…insultuhan ng insultuhan tungkol sa bagay pampulitika at kokonti na lang panahon namin…”

“Lahat na kami mag-resign kung ganyan rin lang palang mag-away away kami at wala naman na kaming silbi sa taongbayan… eh bakit pa kami mag-di-display ng aming bad manners and bad conduct.”

(Roughly translated)

“It’s frustrating. All we do is trade insults over politics considering we are running out of time…”

“We should just resign if all we’re going to do is fight with each other and we no longer have any use to the public. Why should we display our bad manners and bad conduct.”

Santiago made this statement after walking out of yesterday’s Senate session wherein she lambasted her colleagues for their conduct the day before.

If you’re the sort of citizen who demands quality service from your leaders you’re probably dismayed as well with what went on during last Monday’s discussion on the committee report on Senator Manny Villar’s case. I think it was like watching spoiled children fighting.

I don’t have much to say about Villar’s case except that I find it highly questionable that the former senate president would refuse to exercise his right to face his accusers.

Anyway, going back to Santiago’s statement which inspired this post, I can’t say I disagree with her idea that if the Senate will just focus on politics and childish bickering it would be best for all the senators to just resign. Maybe it’s time we start considering the possibility of abolishing the Senate.

A commenter identified as Dr. Jose Rizal II left this insightful observation on Manolo Quezon III’s blogpost titled “Leaders and Managers.”

The biggest clincher really, Manolo, is that the Philippine Senate, being nationally-elected, DOES NOT REPRESENT ANY CONSTITUENCIES, unlike the US Senate whose constituencies are the various States. Because of this, the Senators do not really answer to anyone. Unlike in the USA where Senators answer to the States each of them represent, and constantly receive a barrage of letters from people in their respective states pleading different causes and issues, the Philippine Senate has Senators who, practically speaking, answer to no one.

It is no wonder, thus, that the Philippine Senate doesn’t really have much to do so that some of their members – one of whom is Noynoy – don’t really do any real legislation work, even if by definition, being a Senator means being a lawmaker.

Instead, such Senatorial slackers look for other “more interesting” things to do such as “questioning what the President does” (referred to by Filipinos as “fiscalizing” – a word which does not exist in the English language) and worse, are constantly in the look out for SCANDALS that have more to do with the lives of showbiz celebrities than with the National Interest. Scandals like the Senate Inquiry on the Brunei Beauties long ago as well as the recent Hayden Kho Sex Video Scandal come to mind.

You can read the full comment here.  And, here’s the video of Senator Santiago saying her quotable quote.

Submitted on 2010/01/15 at 7:47pm

Dear Friends,

Election time is here again. Many of you will shrug this off as another of those futile exercise that we as a dysfunctional nation go through.

Let me tell you, THIS TIME IT IS DIFFERENT. IF we make it so. Why?

1. This is the FIRST TIME THAT IT IS AUTOMATED: COMPLETE WITH FINGERPRINTS (BIOMETRICS). Naysayers talk of loopholes. But one thing is sure: Cheating will certainly be cut down (no ghost voters, no carbon papers, etc…)now. I say, first time. The next time around,some smart-pinoys will know how to go around it. Then cheating begins to accelerate again. WE HAVE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS FIRST AUTOMATED ELECTION.

2. We are now in a precarious situation: World financial crisis, Ondoy, Pepeng, Mt. Mayon, especially the pervasive apathy etc… We are slowly trudging to our doom. If we do not elect a good president this time, we will spiral down this pit. But, if we elect a good president, there is a big chance that we can rise up very quickly too. That is, if the next president will know how to position our country in the current world crisis.

3. There are more alternative media: more social networks,SMS/GMS and information is much much more accessible than before.

4. We have better choices (of candidates) now. Believe me! We do have a GOOD CHOICE!

MY APPEAL TO THE EDUCATED FILIPINOS WHO HAVE MORE ACCESS TO INFORMATION IS THIS: We must vote for the MOST QUALIFIED CANDIDATE TO LEAD us. AND we must CONVINCE all people within our circle of influence to vote for our choice! We, the educated people of our land should pave the way for our next president. Not the artista’s, singers, paid-media persons and other personalities. PLEASE! WE DO THIS CORNY THING EVEN JUST THIS ONCE.

HOW?
1. Be objective! Examine the candidates well. WITHOUT biases you know, surveys, benefits that you’ll gain when he’s president (for your business or careers–Pls., esp. not this! kaya naghihika-us tayo eh.), party-affiliations, strategic voting, etc… Here are some links that might start you out:

PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES:
by GMA (audio)
http://www.gmanews.tv/video/53577/kilalanin-forum-09-jan-2010
by ANC (video)
http://www.pinoychannel.tv/watch/v-185258?title=HARAPAN%2012/02/09%20PART%201/12
by Carlos Romulo Foundation presidential policy debate on Jan 14. (will send the links of recorded video if i can find one)

Che-Che Lazaro did a comprehensive interview of the candidates in alphabetical order. (You may also search for the interviews of candidates in the search box of probetv):

Sen. Benigno Aquino
http://www.probetv.com/index.php?option=com_probetv&view=video&layout=program&id=0&Itemid=8&vi=1417

Sen. Richard Gordon
http://www.probetv.com/index.php?option=com_probetv&view=video&layout=program&vi=1541&Itemid=8

Sec. Gilbert Teodoro
http://www.probetv.com/index.php?option=com_probetv&view=video&layout=program&vi=1344&Itemid=8

Sen. Manuel Villar
http://www.probetv.com/index.php?option=com_probetv&view=video&layout=program&vi=1311&Itemid=8

2. Do a background check on your chosen candidate: Google search, I think will do. Check allegations, counter allegations etc… (Allotted time: please do this fast! by next month: February: you should be sure of your candidate)

3. Once you are sure of your candidate, convince your household members, drivers, yaya, extended families, friends, etc… I think, our words are more credible and I hope we be relentless in convincing die-hards who are already stuck with an unsuitable candidate.

4. Go out and Vote this May (If you can). And if possible volunteer as a pollwatcher. Calling esp. the IT/computer geeks: please study the automated election well. If you see any prob., you can text/FB/e-mail etc… so we be aware what to watch out for.

5. Please pass this e-mail to all Pinoys out there.

Thank you very much.
May we rise to be a great nation once again.
God bless the Philippines!
Mabuhay!

Thanks Sony. This is much appreciated.

Well, as can be expected Noynoy’s followers are jumping on the opportunity to turn this into another viral crap.

Good thing there are still those who can see through the spin.

Come to think of it maybe this picture  is really about Noynoy crossing over to the Villar camp.

Just kidding.

(photo taken from this twitpic page)

Naging Mahirap

Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?
Nag-Pasko ka na ba sa gitna ng kalsada?
Yan ang tanong namin,
Tunay ka bang isa sa amin?

Nalaman mo na bang mapapag-aral ka nya?
Tutulungan tayo para magka-trabaho?
At kanyang plano’y magka-bahay tayo?

Si Villar ang tunay na mahirap.
si Villar ang tunay na may malasakit.
Si Villar ang may kakayahan
At gumawa ng sariling pangalan.

Si Manny Villar ang magtatapos
ng ating kahirapan.

Obviously, the message being imparted here is that Villar knows how to solve poverty because he himself was once poor. But, there’s an even bigger message here that many people probably missed. Villar and his handlers obviously think voters are so stupid they’d actually believe this crap.

Think about it. Does his being a poorboy once upon a time really make Villar the most knowledgeable and most qualified to take on the task of addressing poverty? I don’t think so. Would it even matter that he was once poor? Maybe. Is Villar really pro-poor? Your guess is as good as mine.

I appreciate Villar’s Sipag at Tiyaga slogan. It’s a good message to impart since it basically reminds us that we need to take action and persist if we want to rise above our circumstances. This is precisely why I find it odd that Villar also perpetuates victim mentality. Watch this TV ad titled Sama sa Masa. Pay attention to the line of the elderly woman identified as Araceli Pena.

Kasi pinalad sila maging anak mayaman.

Sounds to me like an excuse. Now, imagine that kind of message taking root among those who saw that ad. I’m sure not a few people said to themselves, “Oo nga. Mayaman kasi sila.” Is that the kind of thinking that would help poor people get themselves out of poverty?

Villar and anyone else who plans to run on a pro-poor agenda should be careful with the messages they impart especially the subliminal ones. They should make sure to promote a winner’s mindset because that is what the poor should strive to have. It would also be good if they refrained from depicting themselves as saviors of the poor long before it becomes fact.

The good senator should also stop reinforcing the misconception that the poor will only get out of poverty by voting formerly-poor-but-now-fantastically-wealthy people into office. That is so trapo. Of course, he should also make sure to mean it when he claims he is pro-poor. Otherwise, he’ll just prove to everyone that he really is trapo.

Manny Villar catches up to Noynoy Aquino in SWS survey

These were the thoughts that ran through my mind after reading in Inquirer dot Net’s breaking news that Presidential candidate Manny Villar had narrowed down Noynoy Aquino’s lead in a Social Weather Station survey.

Here’s an excerpt from that report:

Villar cut Aquino’s lead by eight points – from 19 to 11 percentage points, said the survey sought by San Juan representative Ronaldo Zamora, and conducted from December 27 to 28.

Of the 2, 100 respondents asked by the SWS in Filipino as to who on its list would they most likely vote for if elections were held today, 44 percent said they would go for Aquino while 33 percent for Villar.

Fifteen percent of the respondents chose former president Joseph Estrada while five percent for administration candidate Gilbert Teodoro, the survey said.

Television evangelist Eddie Villanueva came next with one percent, Senator Richard Gordon with 0.5 percent, and Senator Ana Consuelo “Jamby” Madrigal and independent John Carlos de los Reyes tied with 0.4 percent.

I subscribe to the idea that the publication of surveys that shout who is in the lead of one survey or another basically serves a propaganda for the leader in that survey.  It says that the leader of the survey is the one who is most likely to win in the electoral contest and this endows the survey leader with the advantage of a winnable image.

For the second most popular, the advantage of publishing a story that says he is catching up on the survey leader casts the electoral contest as a two way fight.  The other candidates in the electoral contests are cast as also-rans, even before the race is actually run on May 2010.

Moreover, I think that this propaganda of winnability in the form of claiming the lead in certain surveys has an effect on people.  It is a form of mental conditioning that puts blinders on the eyes of the voting public, brainwashing them into believing that the only choices they have are those that lead in the surveys.

Together with the fact that the Comelec makes little or no effort at all at leveling the playing field for all contenders in terms of campaign spending and the amount of political ads a candidate can put out — even before the start of the official campaign period, this creates a situation where in the only candidates that will be present in people’s mind are those that land on front pages because of surveys and those who can have their faces in media 24/7.

If Noynoy Aquino and Manuel Villar are the only names most people get exposed to most of the time, then it becomes most likely that people will think that these are the only contenders in the electoral contest.

On Twitter, there was an exchange between @momblogger (Noemi Dado, blogwatch) and pre-eminent blogger @mlq3 (Manuel Quezon III).  In that exchange, @mlq3 said this, apparently, in response to Noemi’s queries on whether surveys influence a voter’s decision:

@momblogger afaik only about 3% of voters decide on candidates on the basis of surveys

@momblogger If you look at ADMU’s Institute of Phil Culture study of D&E sources of influence on voting decision: http://tinyurl.com/yk4tx3y

Following the shortlink posted by @mlq3, I landed on a matrix showing the result of the Institute of Philippine Culture’s study on “Sources of Influence on voting decision.”

@mlq3 points to the result of a study saying that surveys influence only 3 percent of voters

This tends to go against my position that surveys influence people into voting for the leader in that survey.

That is, until you consider that surveys are published in the media and this forms part of the propaganda put out by the candidate, raising even further awareness for the survey leader.

But regardless of whether or not surveys do or do not influence how people vote, what is clear to me is that electing a leader means choosing the person with the best qualifications for a position and that involves examining a candidate’s worthiness based on a criteria.  Of course, the criteria by itself will not do you any good unless you get to know as much as you can about the other candidates.

If you want to go through various criteria for choosing a President or any candidate, you can go over to @momblogger’s blog.

Here is a direct message from him on twitter:

bluevill Pls read my tweet to momblogger. Debate Sat. at La Salle Zobel cont…

My sincerest apologies.

I am still trying to confirm if Noynoy has changed his mind about coming to the Romulo debate from the organizers.  So far, Noynoy’s camp hasn’t indicated that their candidate has changed his mind.

Late last night I started twittering that it was rather odd that most Noynoy Aquino supporters were deafeningly silent about the fact that their idol/candidate was not going to the Carlos Romulo Foundation Presidential Policy debate.

I gave this post twitter love with mentions to @blogwatch, @momblogger, @carlosceldran, @motwister, and @mojojojo899 just to get the attention of Noynoy’s supporters.

Eventually, @bluevill twittered that Noynoy Aquino would be at a sortie somewhere in Northern Luzon but nevertheless, would go the to debate.

Here’s the screen cap of that twitter from @bluevill:

http://twitter.com/bluevill, apparently a supporter of Noynoy Aquino, says that his candidate will be coming to the Romulo debate on Jan 14

This is a good thing, if true.