A disturbing political message

In the tenth year of my voluntary retirement from active law practice, I have seen places I could not visit then. I realize now that even in the most unexpected places, there are sights to behold that I missed. And, yes, there too, are thought provoking views that somehow arise from changing scenes that I failed to meet head on.

Take the case of my last swing along the coast of the provinces in the island of Leyte. I started from somewhere deep in Southern Leyte, my late father’s home province, to Ormoc City, in Leyte province. Political posters start to be hung in some towns. The faces of leading presidential candidates Villar, Aquino, Teodoro and Estrada are plastered on walls of houses and, of all areas, electric poles. They also look like flowers blooming on trees. Kudos to the persons who took time to put them up, these propaganda materials are difficult to miss because they are placed along lines of visions.

I am glad that there are more visible posters of Honorable Representatives Ocampo and Maza, than everyone else aspiring to become senators. (You can charge my elation to my humble social station and they are touted, although I am unsure of that, to represent my sentiments). In many areas, their faces appear to be, by the sheer absence of competition, dominant. First impression being lasting, it strikes me that vote-getting machineries of these members of the Lower House, now running for the Senate, are well oiled.

Their organization, I mean the left leaning groups, must be efficient, and because, in politics, efficiency and logistics are intertwined, they appear to be moneyed. It is not easy to beat the other candidates, especially those ahead in the field of politics like Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, (former Pres. Marcos’ Minister of Defense) in the propaganda game. Manpower, in great hordes, and materials seemingly inexhaustible, seem to back the machinery of Hon. Ocampo and Maza. In my comparison, the Enrile supporters are presumed to be all over and they would not be caught napping. Yet, the absent posters of this old hand in politics tend to demonstrate that Hon Ocampo and Maza have his number.

The posters of Hon. Ocampo and Maza do not, by any means, look cheap. Professionals obviously worked on them. By that standard alone, they are impressive. Here in Cebu City, I have seen a poster of Senator Lito Lapid, the movie actor for whom I will never waste my vote this May. It looks like despite Sen. Lapid’s preference for the cosmetic, his poster is inferior to those of Hon. Ocampo and Maza. Savings must not have been premium when they have those materials printed. They must not have spared money to come up posters that demand attention.

But, as my eyes got adapted to the constantly appearing posters of Hon. Ocampo and Maza, I was, at the back of my mind, looking for their presidential bet. I was sure it was Sen. Manny Villar. I searched in vain. Sen. Villar’s name was not written anywhere on the posters to indicate their common cause. Neither was his Nacionalista Party inscribed on any corner of the propaganda.

    Thinking that this batch of posters was only intended for Leyte because of the perception that the left leaning people populate there, I tried looking around in Cebu City for similar materials. What I saw in Leyte was what I observed here.

It is not difficult to surmise that Hon. Ocampo and Maza, riding on the surge that Villar is lately showing, are trying their level best to promote their candidacies, independent of party efforts, if only to insure victory. They probably cannot rely upon the NP to carry them to triumph. Just the same, their message is disturbing. Unfortunately, in the little thing I know about politics, there is a harsh term for it and it is called junking.

While early, and while I am not trying to show my preference here because my connection with this paper prevents my publicly professing any leaning, Sen. Villar and Representatives Ocampo and Maza must thresh this issue for their mutual advantage. But, of course, my perception may be unfounded.