Loren, the 'green' leader

Amid the recent outbreak of leptospirosis that killed over a hundred in several flood-stricken areas in Metro Manila and other provinces, our national and local government health officials have effectively contained the deadly disease to date. Thank God for that. Thus, I was rather bothered when I saw the photo of Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro who waded last week in knee-deep flood in Sta.Cruz, Laguna. Hopefully, he had his boots on, behind the blue jeans he was wearing.

The other day, it was the turn of Sen. Loren Legarda who conducted her public hearing on climate change adaptation and disaster mitigation in the still flooded Sta. Cruz, Laguna. But in Loren’s case, her photo release showed she wore boots for protection.  

As chairperson of the Senate Oversight Committee on Climate Change, she dramatically called for a Senate public hearing right at the flooded ricefields in Sitio Butuanan, Sta. Cruz, Laguna. Ricefields surrounding Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines and the third biggest in Southeast Asia, have been flooded for more than a month now since storm Ondoy lashed northern and central Luzon on Sept. 26.

Ondoy caused the waters of the Laguna de Bay to overflow by a historic high of 10.4 meters that left 28 towns and cities submerged in flood waters, and damaged thousands of hectares of rice crops. From the testimony of experts, it was learned that Ondoy poured some 3,300 cubic meters of rainwater on Marikina and Antipolo which should have flowed through the Napindan Channel into the Pasig River and then all the way to Manila Bay at the rate of 150 cubic meters per second.

A study released by the Asian Development Bank in 2004 stated that the Napindan Channel was initially operated by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). But its operation and control were turned over to the Metro Manila Development Authority in 2003.

It’s now clear that the DPWH has assumed full jurisdiction as they announced the eviction of some 2,070 families of squatters (informal settlers), as we bluntly call them, out of the floodway in Napindan and in Manggahan. These families who have put up their shanties at the two floodways are being relocated for their own safety and for the general welfare of the public. The squatting problem at the floodways have been largely blamed for unduly causing the catastrophic flooding in the cities of Marikina and Pasig. 

The Senate public hearing in Laguna was the second round of Loren’s climate change dialogues since this was signed into law last month. She first conducted the Senate hearing at Provident Village in Marikina City, one of the hardest hit by flashfloods when Ondoy unleashed its fury.

Speaking of Loren, The Manila Standard ran yesterday a front page main photo of her side by side with a photo release of Gibo with a catchy caption “Testing the waters.” As the presidential standard-bearer of the ruling administration Lakas-CMD-Kampi, Gibo is reportedly being paired with Loren as his possible vice presidential running mate for the May 2010 elections. After all, the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) of Loren remains coalesced with the administration of President Arroyo.

During his weekly press conference at Malacañang, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita who is the Lakas-CMD-Kampi president, was quoted as saying the administration is willing to welcome back Loren to return as the “prodigal daughter.” She was once a Lakas-CMD before she left the party to join NPC where she was drafted as the vice presidential running mate of the late actor, Fernando Poe Jr. in the May 2004 presidential elections.

But as history unfolded, she lost to her compadre, Vice President Noli de Castro who won as the running mate of President Arroyo under the Lakas-CMD banner. Two years after her successful Senate comeback, the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) junked Loren’s election protest against Noli. 

Although the PET ended their election feud, the competition between Loren and Vice President De Castro continued through the mock polls among presidentiables. Early in the game, the Vice President consistently topped the opinion surveys as the most preferred presidential candidate with Loren a near second.

However, as events are now unfolding, Loren has decided to make a second round and re-launched her vice presidential bid instead. As of today, De Castro remains undecided whether or not to run for the presidency or opt for re-election as Vice President.

As the presidential standard-bearer of the Nacionalista Party (NP) opposition Sen. Manny Villar earlier revealed he has been trying to convince Vice President De Castro to be his running mate. But apparently, their talks have not made any headway up to now. In fact, among the declared presidential candidates, Villar and Gibo are both without any vice presidential running mates as of yet.

Unlike in the United States, our election system provides for separate election for the President and the Vice President. There have been proposals in the past that the Philippines should adopt the US system where the President and the Vice President are elected as one team. But this has not gained support here.

Villar and Gibo have also one thing in common. Their respective camps are also reportedly wooing Loren to become their respective vice presidential candidate. Loren, though, is playing it to the hilt as she, too, keeps the public guessing as to who she would give her nod to.

As the designated UN advocate for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction, Loren gained stature as a “green” leader.

When a person is plainly called “green,” it means he or she is still raw (not ripe yet or young). But certainly, Loren is neither raw nor young to be called “green” by this color definition. As an impassioned advocate for climate change, her “green” leadership represents the fresh color of life.

As the most sought after vice presidential running mate, Loren’s detractors are “green” with envy.