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 campaign for the midterm elections on May 13 under the Aquino administration opened Tuesday with the proclamation of candidates for 12 positions in the Senate by two major contending coalitions—the administration’s Liberal Party ticket and the lineup of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance (UNA).
The fates of two people reveal a great deal about the nature of Philippine elections in particular and politics in general.
It gets weirder by the minute. To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, north is north and south is south, and ne’er the twain shall meet.
Oh no, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will go ahead with its bullheaded plan to “repair” the whole length of Edsa before alternate routes are found for the thousands of vehicles that will be displaced from Edsa because of the repair work. The repairs will take two years, which means Edsa will be hell on earth for at least two years. The DPWH has been able to convince Metro Manila mayors to agree to the massive repairs, and some people have already voiced their suspicions of the reasons the mayors were persuaded.
We wish to emphasize that Vice President Jejomar C. Binay is supporting exclusively the candidates of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) in the 2013 elections.
This refers to a letter titled “A leaderless LP?” (Inquirer, 1/4/13).
The Liberal Party is not in any way involved in the filing of criminal cases against Pangasinan Gov. Amado Espino or the suspension of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. The cases against Espino were lodged by a Pangasinan town mayor who sought the assistance and protection of Interior Secretary Mar Roxas. In the case of Cebu, the suspension of Governor Garcia was issued by the Office of the President through Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government was directed to implement it.
THE Liberal Party (LP) has been silent on charges that it is bullying the political opposition. Cited as basis are the actions taken by the Department of the Interior and Local Government against Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda and Pangasinan Gov. Amado Espino, and the suspension of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia.
It’s no easy matter, but I don’t know that we really have much choice in it. The Ampatuans have every right to run in the elections.
After yesterday’s hoopla at the Commission on Elections and seeing the senatorial lineups of the Liberal Party and the United People’s Coalition, we can safely say that both parties have no respect at all for our Constitution. Why? Because they are mocking the constitutional provision against political dynasties.
I looked at the pictures of the LP and UNA senatorial candidates that appeared in this newspaper last weekend and wondered if JV Ejercito wasn’t right. Why have two parties disputing the Senate at all? Why not just have one supraparty and let the voters choose from among its candidates whom they want to be there?
The two principal political coalitions labored mightily over their senatorial slates and produced… a mouse. Or, rather, a pair of very familiar mice. Can we blame anyone for responding to the sight with indifference or even contempt?
