When the newly elected senators assume office on June 30, there will be six women senators—Grace Poe, Loren Legarda, Nancy Binay and Cynthia Villar, plus the two holdovers, Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Pia Cayetano. At least three new opposition senators—Binay, JV Ejercito and Gringo Honasan—will be added to the opposition ranks in the Senate.
The happiest news after the elections so far: The Jalosjos clan was thrashed by the voters in the Zamboanga Peninsula. Of the 14 clan members fielded, only one made it: Councilor Rosalina Jalosjos, who was elected mayor of Dapitan City, the bailiwick of the clan. Earlier, the candidacies of patriarch Romeo Jalosjos and his brother Dominador Jr. were voided by the Commission on Elections because of their criminal convictions, Romeo for child rape and Dominador for robbery.
Although long dead, the “King of Philippine movies,” Fernando Poe Jr., is still drawing fans. This is evident in the surprising showing of his daughter, Grace Poe, a political neophyte, in the initial counting of votes for the Senate. Grace is leading all the other candidates in the partial and unofficial count so far.
It’s E Day, the second most important day for Filipinos, next to Christmas. So go out and vote. It’s not only your right, it’s also your duty.
THREE DAYS to Election Day. Are you prepared for it? Here are a few practical do’s and don’ts for voters:
If you ask senatorial candidates if they are for or against political dynasties, many of them, including those who are actual members of dynasties, will say they will vote for bills abolishing dynasties, no doubt knowing the strong opposition of the general populace to them. Dynasty members will add, however, “but first we must define what is a political dynasty.”
It is exactly one week to election day but many voters, believe it or not, are still not certain whom to vote for, judging from the many queries I and fellow journalists get. It is really difficult to choose the right candidates for next Monday’s elections because of the general lack of qualifications and the abundance of factors that disqualify many of them, or at least make them not worthy of our votes.
It is already less than two weeks to Election Day but Malacañang is still doing a dirty trick that has left citizens of San Pedro, Laguna, in an uproar. Last April 5, the Palace issued an order removing Mayor Calixto R. Cataquiz as mayor of the municipality, purportedly to implement a Supreme Court ruling that bars his “reemployment” in the government, which stemmed from an administrative case lodged against him almost a decade ago when he was the general manager of the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA).
It is so uplifting to interview independent candidates because they have fresh and sensible ideas to solve the nation’s myriad problems, unlike the trapo of the two main political coalitions who mouth clichés and motherhood statements. Three such independent candidates were the guests at last Monday’s Kapihan sa Manila at the Diamond Hotel: Eddie Villanueva of the Jesus is Lord Movement and JC de los Reyes of the Kapatiran Party, senatorial candidates both, and Steve Salonga, independent candidate for governor of Rizal.
Only A few days before the elections, the Quezon City government exempted squatters in the National Government Center near the Batasang Pambansa from paying real estate taxes on their homes and stores. The government lots will be sold to them at very minimal prices. How lucky can squatters get. That is why Quezon City is called the paradise of squatters. And that is why squatters congregate there.
During an interview of Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon by Inquirer editors, columnists, and reporters at the Inquirer offices the other week, there was talk of fake journalists, derisively called “hao shiaos,” acting as fixers at the Bureau of Customs. It was suggested that the number of “reporters” covering Customs be limited only to the legitimate [...]
Senatorial candidate Paolo Benigno Aquino was the lone guest at the Kapihan sa Manila at the Diamond Hotel last Monday. He talked about a lot of things but what interested many of the journalists present was why he was nicknamed “Bam,” which can easily be misspelled as “Bum,” especially because he has decided to wade into the murky world of politics.
