EDITORIAL - One million votes

The One Cebu, which is headed by Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, has pledged at least one million votes in Cebu for Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential candidate Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro. 

At first glance, the figure seems achievable considering One Cebu, being a dominant party in the province, has huge following and resources. In fact, many see another win for Gov. Garcia, who will go up against Hilario Davide III of the Liberal Party.

But a closer look would tell us the fight among Teodoro, Senator Benigno Aquino III and Sen. Manny Villar for supremacy in Cebu will be a close one. As we see it, Cebuanos have been divided as to who among the three should deserve their votes.

Aquino and Villar have the backing of established political figures in the province, a reality that Teodoro's camp must contend with. And it makes the promise of one million votes not a realistic idea.

It's really an uphill battle for Teodoro to duplicate the landslide victory of his boss in Cebu in the 2004 presidential elections. Even if he wins in Cebu, some quarters are predicting it will not be by a margin of one million votes.

Yes President Gloria Arroyo won by more than a million Cebuano votes against her nearest rival, actor Fernando Poe Jr. But that does not mean, despite being the anointed one, Teodoro is well on his way to repeat her feat despite the support of the province's biggest political party.

Arroyo won in Cebu because Cebuanos knew they cannot trust the presidency to an actor who has no experience in public service. So they had to rally behind her because, from among the candidates, she was the only one capable of governing the country.

But Arroyo's experience is different from the case of Teodoro, who has to contend with the rising popularity of Aquino and Villar in the province. He may have the support of the Cebuanos, but not all of them will go out and vote for him come election day.

There's no question One Cebu party can very well deliver a victory for Teodoro in Cebu. But as far as political alliances are concerned, it would be a tight race among the three presidential contenders in the province.