Why is Serge Osmeña not included in the LP ticket?
One of the most intriguing questions that is being whispered around the political circles today in Manila, in many Visayan cities, and in Mindanao, is the unexpected exclusion of Serge Osmeña III from the Liberal Party senatorial line-up. The Osmeñas in Cebu have always been identified with the LP starting from the time of Serging Osmeña, the late father of both Senator Serge and former Mayor Tomas Osmeña. Of course, the late President Sergio Osmeña Sr, the first and only Cebuano ever to become president of the Republic, was a Nacionalista.
President Osmeña Sr, who was earlier elected as Cebu governor and then congressman and Speaker of the House of Representatives, was elected vice president with his long-time ally and sometimes adversary, Manuel Luis Quezon as president. With the untimely demise of President Quezon in Saranac Lake, in the State of New York, USA, then Vice President Osmeña Sr ascended to the presidency. When the unexpired term of President Quezon (which was assumed and taken over by Vice President Osmeña Sr.), expired, the VP stood for election for the presidency.
In that election President Sergio Osmeña Sr.of the Nacionalista Party was opposed by a fellow Visayan, Manuel Acuna Roxas from Capiz, who was the candidate of the LP that he founded. That was the only time when two Visayan gentlemen contested the highest executive of the nation. And those were the days of the perfect gentlemen in politics. There were no terrorisms nor massive fraud, and the adversaries behaved with great valor and decency. They did not resort to dirty mudslinging nor character assassination. They did not engage in the politics of gold, guns, and goons. They played strictly by the rules.
President Osmeña Sr delivered only one major campaign speech, and he refused to comment on the personality of his opponent. He also did not care to campaign much and was confident that the voters would judge him strictly on the basis of his performance as a public servant. On the other hand, President Roxas went around the country and exerted much effort in his political campaign. Roxas was married into the rich de Leon clan in Baliwag, Bulacan. Thus, Roxas then had more funds and had more backing from Luzon. Osmeña Sr focused only in Visayas and Mindanao.
The results of that election was a very slim plurality of votes in favor of Roxas. The Osmeña partisans urged him to file a protest. But the Cebuano gentleman that Osmeña Sr was, humbly accepted his defeat and the unexpected victory of the Ilonggo challenger, with great equanimity and dignity. In fact, Osmeña Sr attended the Roxas' oath-taking and turned over the reins of the presidency in the true spirit of sportsmanship. We are taking the pains to narrate these historical accounts to lay down my premises that today's LP candidate, Mar, the grandson of President Roxas, has all the respect, if not the affection for the Osmeñas.
Mar's late dad, Senator Gerry Roxas, was a good friend of Serge's father, Serging. Both of them were members of LP. Thus, the exclusion of Serge from today's LP ticket is quite unexpected and totally out of line. If Joel Villanueva was included, despite his cases, why exclude Serge? If Ping Lacson is in, why is Serge out? The only reason is because, our dear Cebuano senator has spoken a lot of his being for Grace Poe, albeit for the year 2022 yet. And Serge is very independent. The LP cannot rein him. He is very vocal. And the LP cannot seem to handle that.
Whatever it is, by excluding our nino bonito, the LP has just lost a big chunk of the Cebuano votes. The LP has no Cebuano in its ticket. They will see then by May 2016 how we in Cebu will respond to this snub.
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