“The Ayatollahs and the Talibans were more upright than those Iran and Afghanistan had as prior rulers; but, were they actually better for those countries?”
by Ducky Paredes
No, I do not agree that Pampanga Governor Ed Panlilio should run for president; I also cannot agree with Bishop Emeritus Teodoro Bacani that Mike Velarde would make a good president.
Neither of the two would make a good president in the same way that the late Cardinal Jaime Sin would have become one of our worst ones if he had ever made a run for the presidency. Among the three, the only one who might have had a chance would have been the late Cardinal. Still, Jaime Sin would have failed as President.
Apparently, some well-intentioned folk are encouraging Among Ed to seriously consider seeking the presidency in 2010, with Isabela Governor Grace Padaca as his running mate. It looks like a winning team with two persons with morality clearly on their side. If we could elect a team like the pair of them into office, we would have among the most honest persons running the Philippines.
Panlilio is interested saying “I am open to taking up the challenge.” Still, Among Ed is not yet set on his candidacy. He says: “I will go for whoever will represent a genuine reform constituency. It does not necessarily have to be me. If there is a more appropriate candidate, why will I present myself? I look at my role now as more of one of the convenors of a genuine reform coalition.”
So, with all those good things going for us, if Among Ed were to become President, why do I come out against his candidacy? Don’t we all want clean, honest and morally upright persons running our country?
I truly wish it was that simple. Let’s look for, run and elect a saint as President; but, will that solve our problems? Is the cure finding someone who is without sin to rule over us?
Isn’t it more important to find someone who can do the bigger job of moving this country forward and being able to work with everyone so that they can all do what they can for the Philippines?
What are the traits that good presidents ought to have? Among them, my short list would include honesty
, integrity, intelligence
leadership,
judgment and
patriotism. But, even with all these, there are still other qualities that are desirable in Presidents: public communication, organizational capacity, political skill, vision, cognitive style, and emotional intelligence. Is that all? I am sure the list can still be expanded.
William F. Buckley once remarked that “the office of the presidency is so staggeringly complicated that nobody, nobody, can be a good president.” Certainly, the presidency is one of the toughest jobs to succeed in.
About Among Ed, I would ask before endorsing him for the Presidency: Has he been a good governor? Has he been able to reform Pampanga? Or, has he painted himself into a corner in his own province, being clean, uncorrupt and, at the same time, basically ineffective?
A president has to be able to effectively use people. One does not prove leadership by isolating himself from those he does not like and distancing from himself those who do not agree with him. A reformer changes the environment he works in; that’s what makes him a reformer – because he changes the place in which he finds himself. How can one be a successful reformer if he is unable to reform society or even the government that he leads? What changes have come Pampanga’s way since they voted for their present governor? Has the province become a winner or has it settled into an existence where hardly anything happens.
Politics in his province has not changed. The next elections will surely be another ruled by Guns, Goons and Gold because the electorate has learned the lesson that the politicians have been preaching – no matter what happens, they will still prevail.
Of course, he was a welcome change from those who were governor before him. Certainly, he is clean in many ways that they could never even dream of. Still, it is entirely possible that at the end of his term, rather than having moved forward, Pampanga will have actually retrogressed as far as economic, health, social and other developments.
The Ayatollahs and the Talibans were more upright than those Iran and Afghanistan had as prior rulers; but, were they actually better for those countries?
As for Brother Mike, what can I say? Is he actually cleaner than our present crop of politicos just because he has not dipped his fingers in public funds even if he has been working with every politician no matter how dirty they have become? And, how about the funds that Brother Mike has been collecting from his loyal followers in El Shaddai? Have they been getting anything back from Brother Mike by way of anything or has it been Brother Mike who has been living off their contributions to the Church and to whatever it is they dedicate theselves to in that organization?
But, let’s hear it from Bishop Bacani, who serves as spiritual adviser to the El Shaddai Catholic lay movement: “Brother Mike will be a very good president, if he would indeed become president, because he’s a very good man. If he would be given the chance to be president, he would be a very good president. If Bro. Mike would become president, he would be a very good president. But that may not be what the Lord has planned for him.”
God plays a lot of jokes on us but none of them have been cruel ones – so far. Let us hope He is not planning on playing the El Shaddai joke on the rest of us.
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The First leg of the San Mig 3-in-1 Coffee Senior Tournament for the Federation of Philippine Amateur Senior Golfers, Inc. (FPASGI) this year will be held at Eastridge Golf and Country Club on Thursday, March 26. 2009. FPASGI President Clyde Fernandez promises a greart raffle, good food and entertainment.
Only FPASGI members are welcome to play in this tournament. Fpr any seniors golfers interested in joining FPASGI — males who are at least 55 or ladies at 50 – please call 421-3861 or go to: www.fpasgi.com.
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hvp 03.23.09)
One Comment
Buti na lamang at nagbabasa ako ng article nyo dito sa Malaya. Naliwanagan ako kung ano ang ibig sabihin ng reformist. I admire Among Ed, all the while I thought, he is really a good bet too.
I remember when our beloved Pres. Cory Aquino has done to our country. In my own observation, she has been an honest and good president but unable to govern the country effectively. Is this the same fate our country will endure if Among Ed become president?
A good and effective reformist would be then attributed to the personality of Bayani Fernando when he was the mayor of Marikina City. He has changed the mindset of every Marikenyans. Even the informal settlers liked him in a sense that they were given a place for dwellings. Heads of Marikenyans are high about their hometown. A sign of good governance.
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