IT’S THEIR SEASON ONCE AGAIN. THE POOR of this nation rule. Elections have a way of smoking them out of the woodwork, the cracks and crevices they inhabit. They are wooed, romanced if you like, as if candidates discovered them and fell in love with them for the first time. Suddenly the poor are on center stage, in the limelight.

That is how it appears, if you go by the political ads of many candidates in the coming May elections. Images and voices of the poor provide the backdrop for campaign ads that cost millions of pesos to produce, air and print.

How do the truly poor feel when they see the likes of them being glorified in those multi-million TV ads? I am inclined to use the word “obscene” to describe this obsession to appear pro-poor, to be identified with the poor, to be counted among the poor—in order to gain votes. Obscene is the word when candidates use the poor to speak for them and to make the poor personify their ambitions.

Well, Wednesday’s Inquirer banner headline said: “It’s carnival time again.”

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TODAY is a red-letter day in Panay Island in commemoration of the 23rd death anniversary of Antique Governor Evelio B. Javier. Obviously, however, most of the youngsters who won’t be going to school today have a vague idea, or none at all, on what really transpired at 11:00 a.m. of February 11, 1986.

How could I forget that Tuesday? I played a role which, though relatively minor, would either make or break me. On top of my job as editor of an Iloilo City-based newspaper, I had just been appointed the only stringer in Western Visayas of Reuters, one of the most prestigious global news agencies. I was 36 years old and on the lookout for my first story for Reuters.

My phone rang a few minutes past 11:00. A Reuters officer was on the line: “Governor Javier has just been assassinated in San Jose, Antique. Go get the story.”

Evelio Javier, 43, immediate past governor, was campaign manager in the province of presidential candidate Cory Aquino in the February 7 snap presidential election.

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DIRTY propaganda materials are starting to sprout in Iloilo City. These are, undoubtedly, the products of dirty minds that we cannot trust in running the affairs of government.

There are acceptable ways in telling the residents of the failures or defects of your opponents without resorting to dirty language and pictures.

And why don’t you just tell the city residents what you have done and can do for them, and why they should trust you in the positions you are seeking? These are what really matter to them.

Mind you, too, that a survey in the United States (which may very well be shared by Filipinos) has shown that dirty propaganda are an affront to the electorate, and they would rather listen to achievements and one’s capabilities to work for the people, as well as the candidate’s known character, in deciding for whom to vote.
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The GMA administration is overtaking dictator Ferdinand Marcos in making a mockery of the democratic process. Since it took power in 2001, its bloody record in human rights violations hit past 1,000 victims of extrajudicial killings and over 200 persons disappeared. The violations still continues.

The culture of impunity persists notwithstanding domestic and international condemnation: state forces killing, abducting and harassing Filipinos and still go scot free because of the government’s tacit tolerance and complicity.

No wonder, like Marcos, the GMA administration also witnesses the specter of its enemy, the NPA guerilla growing in political and military strength notwithstanding its vast superiority in number and weaponry.

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A FINE JOB. Usec for Water Larry Jamora and the rest of the Jamora family would like to thank, through this column, everybody who have contributed to the great success of the 3rd Lincoln College Grand Homecoming held February 8 at the Iloilo Grand Hotel.

“Thank you,” he said, “especially to those who took time out from their other obligations to attend the affair, Class 1960 who hosted it in celebration of their Jubilarian Year, and the Secretariat who worked for months and put in their best efforts to make the affair a big success.”

The hard-working members of the Lincoln College Association Secretariat is composed of Rey Areño (chairman), Ismael Arguelles, Rosa Vila, Raymundo Chu, Aurora Solomia Flaviano, Alicia del Oeste, Marlyn Villarete, couple Jessie and Melanie Lopez, Ignacio Ferrer Jr., Fermin Leonor, Elizabeth David Cadiz, Myrna Montero Javellana, Josefa Asis, Letecia Centeno Dosdos, and Wenceslao E. Mateo Jr. who acted as emcee during this affair.

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ANY motorist will easily notice the street billboards of Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas, candidate for congressman, that blaze with the word “Uswag.” It prompts us into thinking, “Have we Ilonggos really prospered?”

In fairness to the mayor, he and the Chinoys who surround him at the inner sanctum of City Hall – nay, city mall – have certainly enriched themselves in his nine-year reign; and they hope to prosper even more when they get to the House.

But Jerry’s battle cry is also obvious for what’s missing. In past elections, it used to be “Uswag Iloilo! Trabaho para sa masa.”

Indeed, he has employed hundreds of contractual auxiliary police whose monthly pay is so below minimum that they have to do “kotong” to feed their family.

At least they’re better off than the “casuals” recommended by King Raul, who have become casualties.

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ANNOUNCING the 38th Iloilo Paraw Regatta Invitational Rapid Chess Tournament on February 20-21, 2010. It will be held at the Iririmaw Hall of the Breakthrough Restaurant in Sto. Niño Sur, Arevalo, Iloilo City.

Interested parties may register at the Freedom Grandstand Chess Center with NM Cesar Mariano or at the Office of Councilor Jose Espinosa III, chair, Iloilo City Sports Council. Registration fee is P75.00.

Prizes at stake are: 1st – P5,000; 2nd – P3,000; 3rd – P2,000; 4th – P1,000; and 5th – P700.

Special prizes at P300 each are also at stake for Best Female, Best Senior, Best 16-under, Best 12-under and Best 8-under.

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I am never a fan of Farmville. I know it would eat a lot of my limited time if I get hooked to it, just how mIRC made me a chat addict in the late 90s. My Facebook life is limited only to posting my thoughts, commenting on my friend’s posts and chatting.

I know a lot of people who are addicted to Farmville and they admit spending a lot of energies tending their respective farms. I never realized that farming is so attractive to Filipinos. If they can only channel their Farmville addiction to actually working in the farms to produce agricultural products, then we would be assured of food sufficiency.

Our country is facing a food crisis and its agriculture sector is now on a decline – particularly rice production – as brought about by various reasons, ranging from the conversion of rice lands to climate change. Last year, according to agriculture officials, the country’s farm sector posted a lower-than-expected production growth rate of 0.37 percent as strong typhoons significantly slashed the output of farmers and fisherfolk from October to December.

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CHARGES against four members of Parliament in Britain for falsely claiming parliamentary expenses are rocking the foundations of the United Kingdom’s political system.

The political storm over the “dishonest claims” of the MPs involved three from the ruling Labor Party and one from the Tory Party.

The storm erupted at the same time that the Philippine Senate (an institution that has great pretensions as a bulwark of democracy) is split over a report of its top committee finding that one of its senior members, Manuel Villar, is guilty of unethical conduct in relation to the C-5 road extension project.

The Senate committee of the whole, which includes 22 senators, has recommended the censure of Villar for transactions of his real estate companies associated with the project.

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I AM taking temporary leave from this weekly column, in line with the policy and rules on campaigning being implemented by the Commission on Elections (Comelec). And so this will be my last piece before voters go to the polls to choose the next president of the Philippines.

I am presenting the challenges that the new Chief Executive of the land will face beginning in the second half of 2010, particularly with respect to the economy.

True, the prospects for growth for the Philippine economy are a lot brighter this year than in 2009, when it closed below 1 percent in terms of gross domestic product (GDP).

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has projected that the Philippine economy will grow by 3.7 percent this year, a significant jump from the drowsy 0.9-percent growth last year, and higher than the government’s target of 2.6-percent to 3.6-percent growth.

S&P cites sustained growth in domestic consumption, fueled by remittances from overseas Filipinos, as one of the country’s strengths, which offset the impact of the decline in exports.

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