The Revenge of Grace Poe –“Anak ni Panday “

Aftermath of the 2013 Philippine Mid-term Election  

By this time, both local and senatorial winners in the last Philippine mid-term election has been declared  by the Commission On Elections but the smoke of politics has not completely vanished and still hovers in the air. Election winners are still reeling with euphoria while there are some losers who are hell bent on pursuing election protests with different reasons such as cheating,  vote-buying and the questionable reliability of the PCOS units used in the canvassing of votes.

While most election outcomes affirmed the enduring existence of political dynasties, there were a few political families that suffered its worst defeat in the last election.

The political clans of the Singsons, Marcoses and Fariῆas in Ilocos, Garins in Iloilo, Dutertes in Davao City, Revillas of Cavite, Binays of NCR, Mangudadatu of Magundanao, Dys of Isabela and Cayetanos of Taguig, among many others, will continue to hold on and control the political landscape in their respective areas.   

 After more than 4 decades of having a stranglehold of Olongapo, the Gordons suffered its political humiliation at the hands of neophytes in politics. Some political dynasties that became victims in the last election include the Villafuertes of Camarines, Hagedorns of Palawan, Garcias of Cebu, Remullas of Cavite, Fuas of Siquijor, Jalosjoses of Zamboanga  and many more.

Although the losses of several political dynasties in the last election may be considered as a good sign for Philippine politics, the stark truth is that political dynasties will remain a dominant force in the field of politics for as long as we can project.   

Courtesy of gracepoe.ph

Ang Hiwaga Ng Anak Ni Panday 

The final outcome of the Senatorial race displayed a lot of surprises with an independent (adopted by Team Pinoy) and “underdog” candidate, Grace Poe-Llamanzares surprisingly topping the list of the 12 winners.

For most Filipinos, the huge advantage of Grace Poe over most candidates was being the daughter of the late Fernando Poe, Jr. FPJ, movie icon who lost the 2004 presidential election to former Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo amidst allegation of massive election fraud.  

Miss Poe shares her father’s passion to serve and desire to help the poor and understands that poverty can break the Filipino family and bring great harm to our children. The political agenda of Grace Poe includes the necessity to focus on poverty alleviation and strengthen the family as a basic social institution. She wants government to take a more active role in helping children of poor families. Her platform builds on FPJ’s social covenant and focuses on three areas: Poverty alleviation, Opportunities for all, especially the children, and electoral reforms.

Grace Poe is likewise equipped with appropriate academic qualifications, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from  Boston College, Massachusetts and finished two years of Development Studies at UP Manila.

Maybe Grace Poe is a newcomer to politics but not to public service. She proved her leadership competence as Chair of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board under the administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. As MTRCB Chair, she reformed the classification system for movies and television, provided institutional support to independent film makers, and brought together government agencies and media organizations in order to protect the interests of children. All these accomplishments she achieved without calling attention to herself.

In the Feb. 26, 2013 column On Target, Ramon Tulfo wrote;

“Senatorial candidate Grace Poe-Llamanzares will suffer the same fate as her father, FPJ. Llamanzares, who was kicked out of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), made a big blunder when she admitted she bears a grudge against Cebuano voters who chose Gloria over FPJ in the 2004 presidential election.

Duh! She should have kept her feelings to herself since she’s supposed to be courting their votes. Her political gaucherie will make voters in other parts of the Visayas and Mindanao, which areas are Cebuano-speaking, shun her.”

In an earlier column, Ramon Tulfo also remarked with obvious disdain that “Grace Poe is only an adopted child” sounding  as if she and other adopted children are supposed to be inferior or low- grade persons as the rest.

While the voting public tends to be more attracted to politically advantaged individuals, it remains a fact that when someone has been disadvantaged unfairly, being the underdog can make a candidate appear significantly more attractive to the voters.

philnews.ph

Filipinos will never forget that Grace Poe’s father, FPJ had starred in numerous movies where he depicted the “underdog” who overcame Herculean challenges and wins despite all odds protecting the  poor and the oppressed. Filipino voters accepted the allure of Grace Poe as she mentioned in her campaign sorties that she ran as a Senatorial Candidate to continue the aspirations of FPJ for the poor and underprivileged Filipinos.

Simply put, Filipinos are usually drawn to the underdog story.  I have reasons to believe that the unfair disadvantage of Grace Poe as an underdog candidate conjured a passionate response in the voters that is powerful enough find her more physically and emotionally appealing to the electorate.

Senator-elect Grace Poe-Llamanzares has to thank Ramon Tulfo for his several columns where he hurled scathing diatribes against her that propelled sympathy and approval of the Filipino voters. Grace Poe should make use of FPJ’s dictum “ UMPISAHAN MO, TATAPUSIN KO”.

My sincere congratulations to Senator –elect Grace Poe, daughter of FPJ and Susan Roces (Maria Jesusa Levy Sonora) a city-mate of mine and all people from Bacolod City.  We are proud of you!