‘One more chance’

Netnet Camomot

THE presidential election has Sen. Grace Poe, and the Cagayan de Oro mayoral election has the orange congressman. Or should that be the yellow mayor? The violet ex-mayor? Who among the three has the most-est and best-est chance of winning next year? For Poe is kind of the sure-na winner despite the possibility of having American citizens living in Malacanang once it’s her turn to shine.

Former President Manuel L. Quezon once said, “I would rather have a country run like hell by Filipinos than a country run like heaven by the Americans, because however bad a Filipino government might be, we can always change it.”

Quezon was the second president after Emilio Aguinaldo who, by the way, has a major role in “Heneral Luna.” Familiar with the expression “dilang anghel”? Look what happened to Pinas. We have “a country run like hell by Filipinos” for many decades now, and “can always change it” from bad to worse, then worse to bad.

With “Heneral Luna” still fresh in the minds and hearts of the Pinoys who watched it, let’s see how they’re reacting to Poe’s declaration to join the fun run to Malacanang. This issue of her and her hubby and kids being American citizens once upon a time should not be taken lightly, according to some Pinoys, since nationalism is the key towards the presidency. I wonder how long this rule can last in this age of OFWs and refugees.

I was asleep during all the history classes my minute brain had to endure. Thus, on Tuesday midnight, when my sis was talking about “Heneral Luna,” and how great it was, all I could think of was, I hate historical movies. I was asleep when the teacher taught us about Luna, so, how could I relate?

And there’s another factor to my initial ho-hum reaction. My sis knows the movie’s production designers Benjamin Padero and Carlo Tabije. In other words, she could be biased. But everyone else is gushing praise for the movie and I don’t think they’re all friends of Padero and Tabije. That’s the most positive kind of gushing, with heads bowed, hallelujah, we are not worthy, Ikaw na!

Padero is a Cagayanon who has been working in production design for many years. It was he who told my sis that the best time to shoot photos outside in the afternoon is at 3 p.m. There are a few things that I always remember and that’s one of them. But my sis says she doesn’t remember that. So it could be another friend who told me about the 3-p.m. tip? Hmmm. There goes my sleepy minute brain again. Oh, well.

But that brain now has to keep up with the latest political news otherwise it will say that the orange congressman’s wife is running for congresswoman next year, unaware that the orange congressman himself is already telling the madlang pehpohl that no, she’s not running anymore.

Wait, unsa daw? OK, this is what happened. I wrote in a column about orange saying his wife would replace him as congressman in District 2. Right after emailing that column, there was the front page news on orange saying his wife is no longer running. Walking then?

Hay naku. One minute, they’re running, the next, they’re not. There’s this one particular candidate who’s running for mayor next year and wish ko lang he’s the one who decided not to, and I won’t care if he changes his mind many times as long as in the end his final decision is to retire and leave politics to the younger ones. Younger than him, that is.

And there’s the congressman living in Carmen who cannot yet decide whether to go for yellow or orange. In the end, he may also choose to run for mayor? O my gas. Three–yellow, violet, orange–is a crowd. Four is…a quartet, with soprano, alto, tenor, bass. Kompleto na ang choir. I wonder if they will all sing “What a Wonderful World” which happens to be the yellow incumbent mayor’s favorite.

Meanwhile, most of the yellow city councillors and even the yellow city administrator have jumped to the orange party. Which gives me this feeling that it’s still possible for the yellow and orange parties to merge into one yellow-orange team again like the good old days of the 2013 election. Well, “kung mangarap ka’t magising.” To dream… the impossiboooool… dream. To fight… the unbeataboooool… Poe.

Yellow won in 2013, beating the supposedly unbeatable violet, but there’s chika orange helped him win then. Now that orange has joined the fray and is not rooting for yellow anymore, who will emerge as unbeatable next year?

Meanwhile, I finally decided to watch “Heneral Luna” with some friends but it’s not showing in cinemas anymore. Oh, well. Move on na. Looking forward to “One More Chance Part 2”!