Gibo's smarts

Gibo did well in the GMA-7 program on presidentiables, "Isang Tanong." Of all the candidates who took the floor to answer the "one question" posted by the program hosts, Gibo's answers made the most sense to me. I think he floored everyone, including the high hoped Noynoy.

Noynoy's responses lack the substance that I expected. There was even a point that he seemed not sure on what he's saying. Such a disappointment really to see that from a survey leading candidate. He held his ground, but he was found lacking.

And who would really take seriously the likes of Eddie Villanueva and Erap Estrada. Manny Villar, groping with smart things to say, only mouths his usual motto of "sipag at tyaga." No wonder the guy has spokespeople left and right in his party. It was really for his own good.

But Gibo spoke both like a veteran statesman and an idealistic public servant. His rationale made sense. He was indeed a brilliant guy.

But are smarts enough to lead this country? I'm not sure. A lot of smart people led the country and didn't do well for the people. One of them even became a dictator. So smarts are not enough. It is a good start. But it's not enough.

For Gibo to gain ground, considering his struggling ratings in the surveys, he needs to have to present more than his smarts. He is a good material for president. But to even reach it, one has to be voted by the majority of the people. Or else, his smarts will never see the light of day.

Now, let's see how smart he is to solve this problem.

Manny's moves

In the hope of competing with the massive survey lead of Noynoy, Manny Villar wants to ride in the Pacquaio euphoria. Ever the businessman, he is out to negotiate for a win-win deal. Include Pacquaio in the NP slate but have him campaign the NP standard bearer for the 2010 polls.

Such is the true nature of politics. And that is not surprising. Villar is a businessman and a politician par exellance. Since the start of the campaign, he has been making deals left and right. His latest acquisition is his VP candidate, Loren Legarda. Legarda is a prize catch for Villar. In the deal, Villar has more to gain in terms of credibility and popularity. Loren has her own political party to support her. It so happens that she needs a President for her campaign to gain ground.

Villar has also mastered the craft of a politician's stand. And that is, having no clear stand. He accomodates everyone, both pro and anti-Marcos alike. He gives safe answers to relevant questions. And he uses ruses to speak for him on difficult issues.

He has also capitalized to an excellent degree his image of being pro-poor. Coming from a poor family himself, he has packaged himself early in the game to be an example of persistence and industry in order to recover from poverty. This has done a great deal for him with the voting masses.

But by and large, Villar has remained a traditional politician. And his latest action is enough proof for that. Only a trapo would be so opportunistic to ride a current craze like Pacquiao. One can say it's just good business sense. Probably, but it still a trapo's action.

So is the country ready to be led by a businessman but still a traditional politician in the person of Villar? What I know is that the country has had enough of these kinds of guys who would put their business interests above the country. We had had enough of leaders who would try to please everyone and will not make bold decisions because he's being political. Villar does not present the change that we want.

He is smart and cunning, true. But this country does not need smart and cunning. It needs genuine change in the political landscape.

The Characters are Complete

Now the characters are complete. And the race is on. When Loren cast her lot with the NP, we know that the politics for 2010 has reached its 3rd gear. Let's all just finished the Holidays, then the 4th gear, the speed standard for the election, will begin.

Loren completed the picture of those who should be taken seriously in this election. With her, Gibo, Noynoy and Mar, Manny, possibly Chiz if he runs for VP, should round up the choices. Sorry but I really see Edu Manzano as a nuisance. Are we so stupid to believe that he was really a serious contender to the VP post when we all know that he was cast in just to improve the ratings of Gibo?

Sure, he's an Administration candidate. But only because all the possibles: Durano, Vilma Santos, Gov. Garci of Cebu, and even Bong Revilla, has refused the VP slot. Lakas-Kampi CMD has gone desperate. It's not surprising that a lot of defections of the party members has already begun. It's not a question of disloyalty. It's a question of credibility, and even image. Nakakahiya kung baga.

Ebdane has guts. But like Chiz in the presidential running, he's too unstable to be considered seriously. And he's not running for VP so that's one less choice for the voting public.

It would really be exciting when all the propaganda begins to heat up, especially when the candidates start hitting each other. The public will be entertained. It will be amusing for sure. But in the end, when one comes inside the booth, it will be serious business. The vote is a sacred activity. The least one can experience is be confused.

One can be less confuse if we round up only the serious candidates.

What Noynoy should prioritize

I saw the latest ad of Noynoy Aquino for President movement. Talk about star power. Almost all the big stars of the 2 giant networks, ABS-CBN and GMA7 are present. And the song, sang by Regine Velasquez is good too. It helps a lot being a sister of Kris Aquino, known for her star quality. It is an ad that will be a benchmark, or even an envy of the other presidentiables.

But even star power needs a program. Watching the ad, I felt both glad and worried. Glad because I know such star power will draw in the masses, and it can translate to votes. Almost all the politicians I know who utilized celebrities got their share of votes, and they are many. The Noynoy ad topped all of them in terms of star quality. But I also felt worried. Noynoy cannot win without a program, a valid program, at least not with me.

A strategy perhaps? But my recall to Noynoy's campaign, and the rest of the Liberal Party's is the concept of good versus evil in politics. Good, of course, referring to them, and the evil this administration. That is their only argument on top of continuing the fight of Ninoy and Cory, which was pretty obvious.

Making a campaign based only on the things mentioned above is not a respectable campaign. Certainly not respectable for the likes of Noynoy. He needs a concrete platform of government, and he needs to make it public now. If he is serious about the presidency, then his stand on issues should have been already established. And it should have been long before his decision to run. His so-called retreat should have been a serious examination of his principles for this country and the government he wants to establish.

And a program is what he should have prioritized, over a commercial with all the "artistas" present. The ad will help, obviously, but it will not help Noynoy run this country if the masses goes for him in 2010.

And if he wins without a clear, concrete program, then God help us all.