Regardless of whether or not she is disqualified from running for president in 2016, Sen. Grace Poe should not get herself discombobulated by her intentions to serve this country well and save us from the rapacity of the Binay dynasty! In the light of the corruption charges against members of the Binay family, Vice President Jejomar Binay should not be allowed to occupy Malacañang! That is absolutely not an option in a country still trying to pick itself up from the morass of political, social and cultural decadence!
Even if suits to bar her from the presidential race materialize, that is really no cause for alarm in the Philippine setting where litigations normally lapse into irrelevance by the inexorable passage of time. Ten to 15 years is how long cases are usually resolved by our courts, a fact we have resigned ourselves to. A president’s term is only six years. With the Supreme Court as the sole judge of a presidential candidate’s qualification, and given its track record of brazenly ignoring the constitutional two-year prescription for it to decide cases—Houston, problem solved!
The other viable alternative is for Poe to be Mar Roxas’ running mate. That should put a muzzle on Binay’s attack dogs! For who would care to disqualify a vice presidential candidate? That’s unheard of. Only one with a deep-seated grudge or a “KSP” (kulang sa pansin) complex would pursue such a crazy enterprise. Personalan na talaga ’yan!
Binay won over Roxas in 2010 because they were then perceived as standing on the same footing: No corruption charges stuck against any of them. But Binay parlayed his “underdog” image—that is, diminutive size and dark color—into brownie points.
Fortunately, the Senate blue ribbon committee report has changed all that. Binay is now perceived to be really rotten to the core! We are practically hearing everyone shout: Anybody but Binay! Even Sen. Chiz Escudero, who used to believe in his trustworthiness, is now convinced Binay is a scourge this country should not bear with any longer!
We believe puritanical Roxas will win this time around. Poe is a shoo-in for the “spare tire” position. Being herself untainted by any corruption charges, she is virtually guaranteed the presidency in 2022. That will also answer questions regarding her “inexperience.” At last, redemption for this nation is still possible!
—ANNALEE LAUDER, annaleelau@gmail.com