Speakeasy sessions with no-nonsense politicos

MANILA, Philippines - All of sudden, everyone’s into political colors. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. You recognize someone’s choice of candidate with the color of his baller. In fact, ballers have become the easiest mode of campaigning for the new-decade candidates. Before you realize it, we will have caught the Obama bug. Imagine this: US President Barack Obama assumed office more than a year ago. But the worldwide phenomenon, the YouTube debates, the politicians quipping on Twitter reside in our collective consciousness. Now, we want our own Obama. In the past few months, political debates and fora have become real-life telenovelas featuring old-school politicos, some infamous faces and neophytes. At times, you feel it’s in your head too much, and is becoming redundant. You just wish everybody would stop and chill for a moment.

We just had to talk to someone, but not just someone who thinks he knows his politics. We needed some no-nonsense statesmen like Taguig Mayor Freddie Tinga and Atty. Adel Tamano who don’t give a flying eff and cut to the chase. And we wanted sangria sake to go with the conversation. A “speakeasy” such as Izakaya was the perfect venue: urban and snug. So, we first met up with Mayor Tinga at Izakaya and he was holding a stack of DVDs, which he proudly dubs “Kilos Kabataan,” Taguig City’s Glee-meets-Rock-of-Ages musical extravaganza.

YOUNG STAR: Ever joined the glee club back then?

MAYOR FREDDIE TINGA: I’m not an organization kind of guy. I don’t like orgs. In college, they called us “barbarians.” Those are the ones who didn’t have organizations, no fraternities. So when I graduated, it was kind of hard looking for a job because my résumé was so blank. I had one organization, UP varsity baseball team. I’ve never wanted to join organizations. You know, I’ve never even run for class president. Not my thing. So it’s really strange to be mayor. (Laughs)

So you were anti-social…

Yeah, I guess... This job is not easy for me. I think the reason I am able to do it is because I understand those things that I have to do. And if you want to help people, as corny as it may sound, you really have to sacrifice a little of your privacy. I guess, in a way, it makes it fun and strange for me because I’m doing something I did not expect... not really something that your whole psyche is designed for.

Okay, so were you a nerd back then?

What’s your definition of a nerd? I was not the top 10 kind of guy. I was into sci-fi, Star Trek and all that stuff.

You never got into drinking?

I’m not a big drinking guy. I’ve gotten drunk, but it’s not a pleasant experience. I mean, I can drink.

What’s your drink of choice?

Vodka tonic. Stolich… Stolichnaya. Do people still drink vodka tonic these days?

(I wanted this man to dish about his early years; and more sangria sake at the Japanese talk bar seemed to be working.)

What do you think about politicians?

I said “I’d never get into politics.” There’s so much crap involved in politics and up to now, I still think that way. Even if you do a good job, there will be detractors. So if you’re a sane person, you would not go into it. So there’s got to be something a little different for you to get in. And a lot of times that difference is something that’s not too nice. I mean, you know, you’re a megalomaniac. You’re power hungry, kulang ka sa pansin. That’s why a lot of people go into it. I’d like to see the people who go into it, knowing it’s gonna be hard, because they really wanna help and do something good. You like seeing politicians who get into it by accident. That’s why you like watching Noynoy. You’re pretty sure this is not something he wanted to do when he was born.

So you’re a Noynoy Aquino supporter. Why him?

I just think Noynoy has his heart in the right place. We started helping him out when his numbers were dropping. That’s the funny thing... I think he’s his own person. He’ll do what he wants, which is good. I’m pretty sure he never sought this out, the presidency. A lot of people are gonna say they go into public service sacrificing. A lot of it’s BS. You know they’re doing it for themselves.

(By this time, all the sushi and tempura was served at our chillout dojo. I wanted to challenge Tinga; and I was ready for some maki-throwing duels with the man from The Fort.)

But do you think he’s ready to be President?

I became mayor and that was my first public office. I never ran for public office before, never did anything related to government work. So was I ready then? You tell me. Actually, he’s a normal person. That’s his charm. He’s a regular Joe.

The “change” buzzword seems to be passé.

Change is a funny thing. People are excited by new things, but are scared of change. They like their nice, new, bright, shiny things, but change scares them.

(His mom once told him that he was a “rolling stone.” Probably, politics is just another step for something else. In fact, he is not particularly interested in national politics.)

What pisses you off?

Phonies; high and mighty people; and if you think too highly of yourself. But I won’t piss you off to the extent that I’ll embarrass you. I learned it a long time ago. It’s mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.

So you’re not a rebel.

I like the fact that you can change some of the social norms so that the have-nots can get a little better break in life. That’s what I like to do. But to go against the flow for the sake of going is dumb for me and I could never understand that.

I realized we were still waiting for senatorial aspirant Adel Tamano. He couldn’t make it. He was stuck at a campaign rally in Pampanga. So I thought, that’s it… until my phone rang.

YOUNG STAR: I guess it’s going to be a phone patch moment à la The Buzz. Freddie and I were just reminscing about his college years.

ATTY. ADEL TAMANO: As a teen, I was very focused on my studies. I was in the honors section of La Salle Greenhills. I was with the school choir so I’m definitely not the cool, jock type of guy. I’m more the nerdy guy, more of the gleek. I was a gleek before being a gleek was cool.

You should have had a career in music.

In college, I think for a year, I took voice lessons at Ryan Cayabyab’s studio. There was really a point in time that I was thinking of maybe having a music career. But I realized that I wasn’t that good. Music was still part of my life and I had a band and we played for our friends... I was there, but the talent was not.

How difficult was life back then?

It’s very difficult to be a Muslim living in a Christian society. When you’re fasting, during the Ramadan season, your friends don’t really fast. And then of course, you can’t eat pork. It’s too difficult to be a Muslim minority, trying to maintain your culture as a Muslim and yet be accepted into the majority Catholic experience. I guess that was my main struggle.

Have you ever gone wild?

I was quite tame from high school to college. Speaking of the naughty stuff, that happened in law school. I was very much into my studies. The naughty stuff came much later.

Any black eyes or battle scars you got then?

I’m really boring. When I was in college, my dad was in the Senate. But I would just take the jeep to school. I didn’t go out that much. It was only in law school and later when I became a lawyer that learned it was also fun to go out. I’m actually a late bloomer. No fights. I’m a lover, not a fighter.

So no stigma against politicians?

Because my dad was a senator, I never had a negative impression of politicians. My dad was very clean. He never stole from government. In fact, we have a new generation of politicians. We can get rid of that type of thinking.

(And then it hit me: Super Monday/Doomsday is a few sleep cycles away. Will we have a new President? But above all else, I had to know why he was voting for Manny Villar.)

If you are going to choose a president on the basis of qualifications and track record, he’s ahead of the game. He’s been Senate President. He’s been Speaker of the House. He’s built his own business. So, it’s a rational decision. That’s why it’s easy for me to be very comfortable with my choice. And on the heart basis, one, I also chose him partly because my family has been with the Nacionalista Party for 50 years. And I also respect the leadership of Manny. He’s a natural leader and I’m hoping for the best for him and for our party.

(We were about to end our conversation and I had to know...)

iPhone or Blackberry?

I’ve always wanted to use an iPhone but I use a Blackberry. It’s the ease of e-mails and answering e-mails. The rational sense for me is Blackberry. The heart sense is iPhone. But sometimes the art of conversation fades. Like every five minutes, instead of just focusing on the people you’re with, you’re looking at your phone. That’s the negative side.

But don’t you just love social networking?

Social networking... That’s something that no one had foreseen. It has its own sets of problems, disadvantages. I think the fact that the youth now are so “interconnected” — but some people, they’re always checking their cellphones. They’re always checking their Facebook accounts instead of the real thing, because I grew up during the time when we didn’t have these devices. I think that today’s generation has very unique challenges.

You tweet, right?

Yeah, I have a Twitter account. I do tweet. I have a Facebook account. I do that stuff myself...

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For whatever it’s worth, we are sure to follow these young guns, whether at the polls or on Twitter.