EDITORIAL - The Osmeñas. And then there is Tomas.

There is only one reason people can think of why Tomas Osmeña is protesting his defeat to incumbent Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. And it is that he lacks the humility and the grace to accept the mandate Cebuanos handed down in the May 13 elections.

On the matter of humility and grace, let us compare Tomas only with the other members of the Osmeña clan and not with anybody else. That way, the subjects of our comparison can be fairly limited to the same gene pool.

President Osmeña, the grandfather of Tomas, was elected vice president to Manuel Quezon in 1935 and both were reelected in 1941. The term of Quezon was to have ended in 1943 and Osmeña was to have automatically succeeded him.

Quezon refused to step down, citing the circumstances at the time -- the world was at war and the government was in exile in the US Osmeña did not insist. He only became president when Quezon died in 1944.

In 1946, Osmeña ran for president against Manuel Roxas. Never one to foist himself upon the people, Osmeña refused to campaign, saying the people were aware of his long years of honest and dedicated service. He lost. And he never griped about his loss.

Sergio “Serging” Osmeña Jr., the father of Tomas, ran for vice president in 1961 but lost to Emmanuel Pelaez. He never griped about his loss. He never protested. He ran for president in 1969 against Ferdinand Marcos and lost in the stolen election of that year.

Sergio “Serge” Osmeña III, elder brother of Tomas, ran for congressman in Cebu's sixth district in 1992 but was defeated by Nerissa Soon Ruiz. He never protested. John “Sonny” Osmeña, first cousin of Tomas, ran for the Senate in 2007 but lost, placing 20th. He never protested.

Another first cousin of Tomas, Emilio “Lito” Osmeña, ran for vice president in 1992 but lost to Joseph Estrada. He did not protest. In 1998, he ran for president and lost again, still to Joseph Estrada. Again, he did not protest.

So you see, in this huge political family, whose members have occupied every position in government and have experienced every political fortune there is in the game, it seems that only Tomas cannot take the ups and downs of his chosen profession.