“Shameless political maneuvering.”
Part II
One important aspect that allowed the US to control public opinion is their tight control of our local media. US control is interpreted as an attempt to control the press. Any candidate who may advocate restraint of our unbridled exercise of freedom like even putting social order to society is readily accused of having “dictatorial tendency.”
The cry for unbridled freedom blended well with the concept of free enterprise. The oligarchy and the Church could hardly delineate their view of freedom of the press from their business interest as media tycoons. The issue gets murky when the government tacitly allowed foreign-owned mass media to operate television and radio stations, and disseminate foreign publications, to air and present shows intended to propagate ideas contrary to the government.
The financial difficulty of the US is apparent that today, official news outlets of the US and UK like the Voice of America and BBC made a tie-up with local radio stations with one television station, CNN Philippines, defiantly violating the provision of the Constitution. These stations make an hourly broadcast of events bearing interest to them. One must observe that foreign-controlled media do not only compete but often discredit the government despite the ruling made by the SEC and MTRCB.
President Duterte rightly reacted to this column’s comment that Manny Pacquiao and Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel acted to usurp the powers of the President as de oficio head of PDP-Laban. To this day, Pimentel pretends to be cocky as ever. He purposely took advantage of the political affiliation of the President to make sure he will have an assured place in the country’s never ending political bickering. He can only be thankful to the president for being loyal to his ragtag political party.
Senator Pimentel forgot that after the election in 2016, Duterte became the head of the party automatically. This honor is accorded to the president to show that he runs the party. Nonetheless, the President remained loyal to the PDP-Laban despite strong overtures by senator Manny Villar to enlist him as member of the Nacionalista Party. There was that irresistible offer, more so after Duterte opted to choose congressman Alan Peter Cayetano as his vice-presidential running mate.
Every move taken by President Duterte was calculated to maintain his political independence. The Villars have their eye on keeping tabs on their business interests while Duterte remains in power. Most important, the Cayetanos and Villar joined hands to ensure that the Nacionalista Party could “cage out” Marcos from the vice-presidential race.
The effective elimination of Marcos as running mate of Duterte turned out to be one of shameless political maneuvering. As some say, it was BBM that held on to the coattail of Duterte who was made to appear a Nacionalista. But Cayetano ended up miserably to backfire his personal vendetta. Neither could it be said that the PDP-Laban provided the political margin for Duterte.
This explains why the public up to now cannot identify the President as belonging to the Nacionalista Party or to the PDP-Laban. The President won by his own merit and his popularity increased more after his election as President. This gave the President the idea that his daughter’s regional party like Hugpong ng Pagbabago need not be elevated to a nationwide political party to assure itself of victory.
After that election, Pimentel could not assert himself as the party president because he did nothing to contribute to Duterte’s victory. Duterte himself remains silent about his membership with PDP-Laban which has its roots as a yellow party organized by the supporters of the late President Cory Aquino. Duterte, for all his rantings against the yellow and Liberal Party then lorded over by President Noynoy Aquino and Mar Roxas, made his debut as a politician when he was appointed by Cory as mayor of Davao in 1990s.
As one who originally came from the same horde of politicians appointed to replace the duly elected local officials loyal to the ousted President, he himself was a beneficiary of that infamous political pogrom. This explains why Digong felt uneasy when Noynoy and his Liberal Party fanatics launched a systematic barrage to discredit the presidential ambition of Makati mayor Jejomar Binay because that could expose the political largess given by Cory Aquino except that Binay was branded as a consummate money-making and corrupt politician.
Nonetheless, Digong came out unscathed from the political mudslinging, a premonition that Duterte was destined to become president. Neither could Binay attack him for most likely he can be branded as the filthiest candidate. In fact, seldom do people know that both of them are original members of PDP-Laban organized by the late senator Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel that nobody talks about their code of honor.
This explains why the President feels irritated at Senator Pimentel for taking potshots at the administration through his would-be presidential bet senator, Manny Pacquiao. The problem of usurpation as to who should stand as party president began with the failure of Pimentel to clarify what role Pacquaio would be doing as upcoming party leader.
Since the election of Duterte as President, no election was held except that Pimentel appointed Pacquiao as president. It was a clever move made that instead of giving the President a free hand to run the party as ex-oficio head, he allowed Pacquiao to usurp that role without the benefit of holding an election. Pimentel practically abdicated his role as interim president after the death of the founding head, Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr.
President Duterte now sees the conduct of the two senators utterly disgusting and disrespectful. What is insulting is that Senator Pacquiao focused his attacks on the energy policy of the government, an issue now being raised by the opposition against his administration. Pimentel, on the other hand, continues to play coy as if unaware of what is going on.
On the other hand, Gilberto Teodoro has offered himself as the vice-presidential candidate for Davao City mayor Sara Duterte. Some interpret the move as insidious and cunning. He wants to increase his chances of winning at the expense of preventing the possibility of a coalition between Sara Duterte and Bongbong Marcos, a replica of what Cayetano and Villar did in the 2016, which by fortune, saw the two ambitious politicians ending in trash.
Some people could sense the move of Teodoro as sinister. His positioning could resurrect the Prietos from the debacle of having to chew much more than what they could swallow. Gibo is married to a Prieto. The Mile Long property that was taken from them could be regained and the newspaper they used as an attack dog against the President could be back in its old form.
rpkapunan@gmail.com
