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NoyNoy Aquino

Manny Villar

Gibo Teodoro

Joseph Estrada

[Vester]

As the only member of my country of voting age in this forum, I'd like to take this unique opportunity to share with the world (yes: Bay 12 is apparently the world now) the candidates for the Philippine Presidential Elections! 2010! YAY!

A little background first:


Our current President, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. "GMA"

 GMA is a curious case. She's the daughter of one of the most beloved Presidents in our nation's history, and a member of the powerful Macapagal clan of Pampanga, descended directly from one of the last Kings or Datus of the Luzon Island. Their surname means (in Kapampangan): "Will last forever", or if you want to prettify it, "eternal".
 She was elected to the Vice-Presidential office as former actor Joseph "Erap" Estrada's running mate. During the course of Erap's presidency, numerous allegations of graft and plunder piled up. This culminated in "People Power II": the second deposition of an unfit leader by the people. (People Power I was essentially the Crowning Moment of Awesome for Democracy in SE Asia, in case you're not old enough to remember, which I'm not).
 At People Power II, she was sworn in as acting President by Jaime Cardinal Sin (who was, well, a Cardinal), with ex-Presidents Fidel V. Ramos (a former General who won some medal or other during the Korean War) and Corazon Aquino, our first female President, standing by - effectively giving her their sponsorship and blessing.
 Then everything went to hell.
 For the past few years, scandals, side-deals with Chinese IT companies, Korean logging companies, and other unsavory elements have been bogging GMA's tenure down. It doesn't help that her husband, the first gentleman, was named in several of these accounts and has since gone low-profile. This, along with the fact that she was accused of cheating to get reelected in 2004, has contributed to an atmosphere of unhealthy paranoia and suspicion. (Remember the Maguindanao Massacre thing I posted about some months ago? Less than a week after the fact, people began to go, "Well, maybe the President's somehow responsible.)
 Thus we go into 2010 covered in McCarthy-era levels of suspicion and mistrust.

The Candidates
This is technically a face value test. I want to see how you guys react to the candidates despite having no prior knowledge of them, besides the tiny sidebar I'll be putting under their faces.



Benigno Aquino III

 The son of assassinated Senator Ninoy Aquino, whose death triggered the EDSA revolution. The son of the late ex-President Corazon Aquino, who is widely regarded as a great symbol for hope.

Party: Liberal Party
Basic Platform: Anti-Corruption. Hope. Change.
Notes: Very idealistic. Appeals to the need for change, setting himself up as a symbol for hope. However, he is a Senator with very few notable political achievements. Also, he is 50 years old and used to live with his mother up until recently. He is currently leading in the SWS (Social Weather Survey) polls.


Manuel "Manny" Villar

 A business tycoon and the current Senate President. Built himself up from an impoverished family in one of the poorest districts of Metro Manila into one of the richest men in the Philippines today.

Party: Nacionalista (Nationalist) Party
Basic Platform: Poverty Alleviation.
Notes: One of the things that makes Manny Villar such a notable competitor in the race is his appeal to the impoverished masses. Literally 70% of the Philippines' population is below the poverty line. The candidate who wins the poor wins the country. As for other things, Manny Villar was accused of corruption on a scam involving roads, then accused of bribing the Senate Commission to let him off. Ironically, he led the impeachment proceedings of ex-President Joseph Estrada. Currently second in the SWS polls.



Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro (On the left)

 Former Secretary of Defense, and the Administration Party's candidate for the 2010 Presidential elections. He was Senator of the same province as NoyNoy Aquino, due in part to the fact that they are cousins and Politics runs in the family. Nephew to Danding Cojuangco, who is essentially Vito Corleone, except with less assassination.

Party: Lakas-Kampi CMD (The full name is too long, but it has the phrase "Filipino-Christian-Muslim".)
Basic Platform: Political Growth in the outlying provinces (uhhh...) and improving healthcare and education (yay!)
Notes: Gibo really got the short end of the stick. His uncle, one of the most powerful men in the country, is supporting his cousin instead. Despite this and the taint that he gets as being the "administration's candidate", he manages to soldier along. However, he has a profound disconnect with the poor, and due to this is currently third on the SWS polls.


Joseph "Erap" Estrada

 I know what you're thinking. "Haven't I seen this guy's name somewhere before?" Well, that's because you have. Near the top of this page. Near the words "Impeached" "Corruption" and "Deposition". Also there was the word "revolution".

Party: Partido ng Masang Pilipino (Party of the Filipino Masses)
Basic Platform: Hey, you voted for me before, do it again!
Notes: Americans. Can you imagine Bill Clinton running for President again? No? That's probably because he was impeached. Justly or not, that's the kind of thing that sticks in the public mind. So why is this guy running?
Short answer: Filipinos have the political memory of a goldfish. What? This guy is corrupt? Naw, that was ten years ago, that practically never happened! Yeah, it's a bit of a problem. This guy had 16% of the polls when I checked 3 months ago. WHAT.



At any rate, those are the candidates. Behold them! What do you think? (I didn't put the candidate I'm voting for up there because he has 1% of the polls. But his name alone should be worth 50%, because his name is epic and very, very white. Can you imagine, "And in recent news, Philippine President Dick Gordon..."

[Acanthus117]

Hehe. I don't know how some of us can be dumb naive enough to vote for a president who robbed the country blind.

[Osmosis Jones]

Oh wow, and I thought Aussie pollies were bad. You have a mommy's boy idealist, a business tycoon, a family outcast and a dirty polly. None of those sound that inspiring.

That being said, I like the sound of Teodoro; he has held high office before, so he has at least some idea what he is doing, he doesn't sound too dodgy or naive, and healthcare and education are always vital areas that can be objectively assessed.

[Vester]

Hehe. I don't know how some of us can be dumb naive enough to vote for a president who robbed the country blind.

"Give a man a can of spam, and you have his vote for the rest of your life."

Oh wow, and I thought Aussie pollies were bad. You have a mommy's boy idealist, a business tycoon, a family outcast and a dirty polly. None of those sound that inspiring.

That being said, I like the sound of Teodoro; he has held high office before, so he has at least some idea what he is doing, he doesn't sound too dodgy or naive, and healthcare and education are always vital areas that can be objectively assessed.

Actually, there's one good thing about him I forgot to mention: post-Ketsana, he was in charge of relief efforts. And he actually did quite well.

[Osmosis Jones]

Good, it means he can also keep his head in dire straights. He has my imaginary vote!

[Vester]

With that, I think I shall establish a poll of my own.

[Akigagak]

Benigno, simply because he's the most unlikely president ever, and I can't imagine someone like him ever being in control even if he did somehow win the election.

[Vester]

His sister, Kris Aquino, is a TV personality. People are sincerely worried that if he wins, she'll control the country. Which is patently ridiculous, since I'm pretty sure she'd be satisfied with just the north.

[Acanthus117]

Speaking of Kris Aquino, I sadly cannot bear to watch most/any local programming aside from the news. most of it's cringeworthy IMHO.

[Vester]

Speak for yourself, anything involving Albert Martinez is good enough for me. Even if it's awful. 

[Duke 2.0]

 I'll have to admit, two of those candidates look rather Average Joe. And not the cool kind, the average kind. Not necessarily bad, just feels like I could meet them on the subway train. Something slightly unsettling about that.

 But yeah, Teodoro seems like the guy least concerned about personal gain. Granted "Political Growth in the outlying provinces" could mean any number of things, but the lack of corruption and the political background make him seem like a decent choice. Although something about Secretary of Defense sounds familiar to me somehow.

[Vester]

If you meet Manny Villlar on a train, he probably owns it.

Also, this is his running mate.



She's considered the best-looking woman in the Senate. I'm pretty sure that swung some voters his way.

But yeah, Teodoro seems like the guy least concerned about personal gain. Granted "Political Growth in the outlying provinces" could mean any number of things, but the lack of corruption and the political background make him seem like a decent choice. Although something about Secretary of Defense sounds familiar to me somehow.

Gibo may lose the approval of the Catholic Church, due to issues on contraception. This is a very big thing in the Philippines. I think I mentioned somewhere before that the Church could potentially swing an election - and other times it's been used to establish the legitimacy of a coup. Basically, don't get on the Archbishop's bad side, here.

[Judas Maccabeus]

Americans. Can you imagine Bill Clinton running for President again? No? That's probably because he was impeached.

Actually, it's because the US Constitution limits presidents to two terms.  If it weren't for that, I actually could imagine him running again. 

Hmmm... no socialist candidates?  Bah!

[Osmosis Jones]

Wait, Teodoro is pro-contraception? I like him more and more.

[Vester]

He might be. He has to be deliberately vague, otherwise any chance of his winning will go *poof*. His current proposal is a bit... funny.

Basically, if you volunteer to not have a kid, he'll pay you. Which is okay in theory, but... wow. It does sound a bit unwieldy.