I have been reading on an on and off basis, Walking With Destiny, the biography of Winston Churchill by Andrew Roberts. The book was a gift by the late National Artist for Literature, F. Sionil Jose, with whom I had been exchanging Messenger correspondence with, since he sent me a message to thank me for my defense of him against the tirades of Joel Pablo Salud.
Manong Frankie gave me the whole series of his work known as the Rosales Saga, in two installments and one book; pick any book in the store you like, he said, when you come to get the other books. I have long been a Churchill fan because of his wit, particularly in his skills in the fine art of the insult. The Churchill biography is a paperback edition but the damn book is still heavy.
It makes for very interesting reading as it details the life of one of the greatest leaders who stood out at a crucial time in world history. It is the story of a man who is obsessed with redeeming his father’s reputation by one day becoming the Prime Minister of England. Churchill was a man who took control of his destiny at an early age and never stopped until he thought he was done with history, and not the other way around.
He became famous in England because of his work as a war correspondent, which was his sideline when he embarked on his military career by attending the Royal Military College at Sandhurst. Churchill wanted to soldier and write at the same time. It can be said that Churchill was a man who made his destiny. He started at the bottom and worked his way to the top, never ashamed to use his family’s contacts, both political and social, in his rise to the top. Despite his genealogy as a descendant of the Duke or Marlborough, this wasn’t guaranteed.
Which brings us to Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his destiny. The opposition had a field day last Friday after news broke out that Marcos declined an invitation from Jessica Soho of GMA to guest in her program together with other Presidentiables. The hashtag #marcosduwag trended on social media. There was the usual pitch battles on social media between Marcos and Robredo diehards.
The arguments flew thick and fast for and against Marcos’ decision. But what struck me was the defense mounted by Marcos supporters putting into play the issue of the biased mainstream media. I’ve written about how the traditional role of the so-called Fourth Estate has come to pass. But like it or not, the public still benefits from its existence. This is particularly true with the GMA network since it has become the primus inter pares in the broadcast industry after the shutdown of ABS-CBN. Marcos’ presence would’ve afforded him the opportunity of giving voters an idea about his governance platform at this crucial point given the pandemic is about to mark its second anniversary with Filipinos still reeling from the economic downturn from the disruption caused by Covid-19. As the candidate leading the surveys, he had an obligation to the voters.
There is no such thing as a perfect leader. They are human after all. We are all flawed, in one way or another. But what makes one standout is when he rises to the occasion and steps up when it is most needed. This was the case with Rodrigo Duterte in 2016.
We were faced with the specter of either a Roxas, Binay or Poe for President. In my opinion, none of the three were compelling enough for majority of Filipinos to vote for any one of them. If Duterte had not run, Binay would’ve been the only option for me. But the minute Duterte made his decision, it was a done deal.
To my mind, there is little doubt that Marcos won the Vice-Presidency in 2016. The surveys bear this out. Robredo can’t even find her voter base even after five years as Vice-President. But for the sake of argument, let’s assume that Marcos’ protest was resolved in his favor and he is the incumbent Vice-President, would Duterte have anointed him as his successor?
Duterte surprised everyone by characterizing Marcos as weak and going as far as accusing him of being a drug user. Manila being the small town that it is, this piece of information has been common knowledge to the “in” crowd for the longest time. Does it really matter that Marcos has a penchant for recreational drug use? I would think that our generation has done more than experiment with drugs during our prime.
At the height of the furor over the Marcos revelation, it was announced that he was joining the same type of fora but hosted by Boy Abunda of ABS-CBN. Why ABS-CBN? Isn’t this network more biased against Marcos than GMA? GMA is partly owned by the Duavit family and the late Bibit Duavit was a staunch Marcos supporter. But one can also recall how it was on GMA that Dong Puno made his name as public affairs anchor and where Straight from the Shoulder under Louie Beltran was revived during the waning years of the Marcos adminstration.
The taped-as-live program of Jessica Soho finally aired last Saturday. The performance of each participant was measured by the public. Programs of this nature afford the public the opportunity of seeing how the candidates react to tough questions. It should be the case as the Presidency isn’t a walk in the park. Not with the challenges we face because of the disruption caused by the pandemic.
The answers to the “tough” questions recalibrated public perception of the candidate. Sen. Ping Lacson stood out because he answered every “tough” question thrown at him satisfactorily.
Vice-President Leni Robredo still couldn’t explain her controversial statement about vote-buying. It would’ve been better for her to admit she was wrong.
Manny Pacquiao and Isko Moreno squirmed, though the latter was full of braggadocio trying to imitate Duterte’s style, but failing miserably in the process. You could see Pacquiao’s sincerity though he lied through the skin of his teeth when it came to his tax deficiencies and absenteeism as a Congressman and a Senator.
These are the benefits of appearing in public affairs programs on television. Tough question are asked which allow the public to guage each candidate’s response.
Bottomline, Marcos can’t choose which programs or fora he joins or attends out of fear or anxiety over the “tough” questions. In the above interview, which is actually more of a monologue, Marcos acquits himself well enough. But I have an issue with his idea of privatizing electric cooperatives. This would be the last step in the oligarchs gaining control of the power industry in the country.
Marcos also talks of a grand plan for the country but offers no specific details. At this late a stage when the official campaign period is to begin on February 8, he should have a detailed governance platform to present to the public but apparently, he still doesn’t have one yet. This speaks volumes about his leadership style. Definitely he isn’t as brilliant as his father but Marcos should want the Presidency bad enough that he has to make the effort to prepare for it in the best possible way he can just like his father did.
Churchill was 66 when he finally became Prime Minister of England at the outbreak of World War II. Bongbong Marcos is 64. Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was 48 when he was elected President in 1965.
This is where the comparison among great men ends. Bongbong Marcos still has to prove himself as a leader in the next four months if he is really bent on becoming the 17th President of the Republic of the Philippines. Bonbong should put in the effort to at least come close to Apo Lakay when it comes to toughness and courage since he falls short when it comes to intellectual capacity and education already. He cannot and should not regard the Presidency as his political inheritance that is to be served up to him on a silver platter.
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