Makeover

Obviously hurting from the stinging counter-attacks on him by Senate president Juan Ponce Enrile, former military rebel-turned Senator Antonio Trillanes IV is on a public relations binge. Or should I say damage control in media through paid advertisements cum early campaigning for his re-election bid in the coming midterm elections in May 2013.

An 8 by 7-inch sized ad, with the photo of Trillanes and a list of his accomplishments as senator, was published in a Tagalog tabloid last Monday. The title of the paid ad was self-explanatory: “Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV Ulat sa Bayan 2012.”

The ad credited Trillanes as the “4th most productive senator (per number of bills filed); “25 bills passed into law”; and “712 bills and resolutions filed (14th and 15th Congress).” The ad claimed Trillanes as the principal author of several listed bills passed by Congress and signed into law.

The following Republic Acts (RA) were listed to the credit of Trillanes as “principal author”: RA 9522 Archipelagic Baselines Law; RA 10173 Data Privacy Act of 2012; all the way to the recently approved Cybercrime Prevention Act that was signed into law by President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III just two weeks ago.

We can’t accuse the senator of blowing his own horn again. Who else would give him credit for his legislative output? By the way, the ad did not declare who paid for its publication as required under existing rules of the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

I don’t think though this Comelec rule applies already to Trillanes since the filing of certificates of candidacy will still take place next week. No less than Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes says there is no such thing as “premature campaigning” as the rules have already been relaxed.

Although President Aquino already confirmed he indeed authorized Trillanes to do “backdoor” talks with China, the ouster plot he led against Enrile as Senate chief may spell doom for his re-election bid.

“I will unseat him (Trillanes) from the Senate,” Enrile vowed. Asked how he will do it, Enrile said he will personally campaign against Trillanes. Enrile is not making an empty threat. At the proclamation last Monday of the 12-man senatorial ticket of the United National Alliance (UNA), Enrile got the ball rolling.

Enrile is president of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) which has formed its own coalition senatorial ticket with Vice President Jejomar Binay’s PDP-Laban. Enrile reportedly chipped in an undisclosed amount in millions of pesos as seed fund to ensure the victory of the UNA senatorial bets in the May 2013 elections.

Veteran politicians know Enrile as a tightwad in terms of campaign funds. So they were most surprised at the sudden generosity of Enrile. Of course, this should not be surprising since his son, Cagayan Rep. Jackie Enrile, is among the UNA senatorial bets. Surely, however, Enrile’s end goal includes easing out Trillanes from the Senate in the next Congress. 

By tangling with Enrile, Trillanes also earned the ire of Binay and PMP’s founding chairman, former President Joseph Estrada. Binay and Estrada announced at the UNA proclamation they will join Enrile at the campaign trail for their senatorial ticket.

Although amnestied no less by the President in June 2010, Trillanes did not join Aquino’s Liberal Party (LP). He recently joined instead the Nacionalista Party (NP) headed by Sen. Manny Villar who ran but lost to Noy in the May 2010 presidential elections. But for next year’s polls, NP has entered into a coalition with LP.

Apparently gearing up for his re-election bid, Trillanes decided it’s time for him to start making noise. Breaking the secrecy of his self-appointed mission, Trillanes went around and peddled stories of his backdoor talks with China.

As subsequently revealed by P-Noy, it was Trillanes who offered his services to help ease tension between the Philippines and China when the senator was in Beijing sometime last July. At the time Philippine authorities balked at intrusions of Chinese fishing vessels and gunboats into the 200-mile exclusive economic zone in Panatag Shoal off Zambales.

But before the Palace clarifications were made, Trillanes dug a deeper hole for himself. Speaking on a personal privilege at the Senate floor, Trillanes launched scathing attacks at Enrile’s leadership for allegedly trying to ram through approval of the controversial bill that seeks to divide into two the province of Camarines Sur.

The Senate chief though came prepared that day to confront Trillanes, not on CamSur bill but about the latter’s secret China affairs. CamSur was just a smokescreen. As it turned out, Enrile was steps ahead about the NP plot to oust him as Senate president with Trillanes as field commander.

Worse, LP dissociated and distanced themselves from the purported Senate coup plot of their coalition partners. With six NP and four LP senators, they still do not have the numbers to dislodge Enrile as Senate chief. They need 13 votes to unseat him.

The oust Enrile bid of Trillanes has gone kaput when no less than the LP leadership reassured they will not support any attempts to replace the incumbent Senate president. This was personally relayed to Enrile by newly confirmed Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas II, the LP president. Roxas along with Sen. Franklin Drilon (LP) reiterated this to Enrile and Senate president pro tempore Jinggoy Estrada while they were together at the 78th birthday party of Sen. Edgardo Angara last Monday night at the Hotel Sofitel.

Unfortunately though for him, Trillanes already struck a raw nerve that sent Enrile into fits. Trillanes is the first casualty of his own noisemaking antics for his re-election bid. His acoustic word war with Enrile backfired.

After the neophyte senator got trounced by the veteran senator, no wonder Trillanes needs not just a makeover. But will an early campaign salvage what remains of his checkered political career at this stage?