MANILA, Philippines—While the ruling coalition was saddled with the twin problems of not really having a viable candidate and not really having a choice (President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made her choice clear once Vice President Noli de Castro took himself out of the running), it could have done far worse than to announce its intention to make Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. the President’s anointed successor. In the public perception, Teodoro can beat Senator Jamby Madrigal, JC de los Angeles and Nicanor Perlas for the presidency but no one else. The real contenders remain Noynoy Aquino, Chiz Escudero and Manny Villar.
But at least the ruling coalition can drumbeat that its money and machinery can accomplish electoral miracles, and this is where Teodoro’s genuine strengths come in. The man is well-spoken, has outstanding educational credentials, is a political risk-taker (having tried to impeach former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. and brought the country to the brink of a constitutional crisis), and has executive experience in running the defense department. Most of all—and this is where Teodoro, this early on despite his position in the cellar, is contributing to the campaign—he has demonstrated confidence and clarity in expressing what he stands for.
He has been forthright and firm in his stand favoring the Reproductive Health bill; he has categorically stated he wants Charter change with a unicameral legislature but a nationally elected president, the elimination of the anti-dynasty provision in the Charter, as well as a limited coverage for the courts when it comes to business matters; he prefers a military solution to rebellion and banditry in Mindanao, and close ties with America in that regard; and he has announced that the prosecution of officials for corruption will not be his priority, because it is the Ombudsman’s job.
It is immaterial, at this point, what we think about these positions: what is relevant, and commendable, is that he’s been clear in staking out his position on the issues. It raises the bar for all the presidential candidates, and that’s a positive thing.
What we are concerned about, however, is the manner the Lakas-Kampi coalition went through the motions of trying to make his candidacy appear as a genuinely democratic choice by the Lakas-Kampi coalition. It began with provincial executives endorsing his candidacy, a call taken up by legislators affiliated with the administration, until finally ratified by the party big shots, a number of whom are Teodoro’s Cabinet colleagues.
These are the very same people—acting in league with the administration Teodoro both belongs to and serves—that have contributed to his being in a peculiar, if prominent, position of responsibility, though apparently public perception hardly gives them any credit for it. Teodoro has been elevated to the position of party standard-bearer for a coalition that has much power but little goodwill. How that power has been marshaled and cultivated through the years tells why the coalition is where it is now and fuels its expectations of the good times continuing under a Teodoro presidency. In which case, Teodoro needs to reflect how his forthright stance on so many issues might collide with the proven flexibility of the coalition he’s so recently joined. Since it is his partymates’ efforts that he’s relying on to compensate for his current cellar-status, and since they have been coddled and spoiled by the President he continues to serve, how can he claim he’ll be better than her?
Perhaps he should then add to his clear platform his stand on the following: whether he will use the pork barrel to fatten or starve members of Congress, depending on their loyalty; whether he will abolish the practice of handing out bags with cash as “gifts” to ensure “attendance” in the House of Representatives, and support for his administration by provincial officials; whether the current godfathers of smuggling will remain in place; whether the bureaucracy will continue to bristle with retired generals; whether he will actively use Executive Order 464 and other legal innovations of the current dispensation.
Whether, in a word, he will categorically warn his partymates that the fun will be over, and commit to the public that the favored friends of the current dispensation will be no friends of his.
