IT helps to visit my favorite watering hole in Daly City. I pick up insights from folks who can still see the forest from the trees, with respect to the passing political scene in the Philippines.
“Have you read the latest about Grace Poe in the Manila papers?” asks Pete from behind the bar and, without waiting for an answer, he reads from the online edition of the Philippine Daily Tribune:
“The senator also debunked the impression that there are emerging ties with influential business tycoon Eduardo ‘Danding’ Cojuangco, founder of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) and whom Poe recently defended over the coco levy issue.
“’That is not true,’ the senator said when asked on the alleged ‘Poejuangco’ being coined by critics pertaining to her and Cojuangco that is supposed to be similar to the ‘Villarroyo’, the purported unholy alliance formed in 2010 presidential elections by then candidate, Sen. Manuel ‘Manny’ Villar with unlikely ally, then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.”
“Poejuangco? Meaning, Poe and Cojuangco?” pipes in Gerry from his table, while sipping from a mug of San Miguel Beer. “That’s Danding Cojuangco, the chairman of San Miguel Corporation.”
“That’s old news,” cuts in Ka Danny, an old hand in divining Philippine politics. “Poe’s husband works with San Miguel and Ramon Ang, COO of the corporation has long been rumored to be bankrolling the Poe campaign. Siyempre, where Ang is, Danding is right behind.”
The conversation sparks my interest. “But I thought that it’s Noynoy Aquino who is secretly supporting Poe,” I say. “Which is why some people refer to Grace Poe as Grace Poe-noy.”
“Poenoy, Poejuangco, same-same,” snaps Ka Danny. “It’s all in the family.”
“How about Poenocchio?” asks Jimmy, a newcomer to the watering hole.
“Poenocchio – as in Poe and Pinocchio, the wooden dummy? What makes you say that?”
“Well,” says Jimmy, “What makes you think that Grace Poe is charting her own political course? She’s obviously the dummy of big corporate groups with major interests to protect like the coconut levy. And a President Poe can do that for them.”
They all turn to me for confirmation, as if I’m supposed to know these things. I shrug my shoulders and admit that what I know is what I read in the papers.
“But the Manila papers all have different versions of the news, depending on which powerful group is behind them,” complains Jimmy.
“Well, there you are,” I say. “All we can do is guess. Or make deductions.”
“For instance, what you can say about the rumor that Poe is the secret candidate of Noynoy Aquino?” asks Pete.
“Well, why not?” butts in Ka Danny. “Everyone in the Philippines has a Number Two – I mean, a Number One-A, One-B, etcetera. Ask Erap Estrada.”
“Ka Danny means that Noynoy is supporting both Mar Roxas and Grace Poe and bahala na, which one of them wins,” Gerry explains.
“Isn’t that a double-cross?” asks Jimmy.
“That’s nothing new forAquino and Roxas,” says Ka Danny who seems to know everything about Philippine politics. “Remember what happened during the 2010 presidential campaign? Roxas was running for vice-president as the running mate of Noynoy but the Aquino camp secretly supported Jojo Binay. That’s why Roxas lost.”
“I remember that,” says Pete. “They called it Noy-Bi or Noynoy and Binay.”
“Now it’s Poe-noy or Grace Poe and Noynoy Aquino,” adds Gerry.
“But do you think Noynoy Aquino knew that people in his group were supporting Binay against Roxas?” asks Jimmy who is the youngest and most naïve of the group.
Ka Danny shakes his head at Jimmy. “Talagang may gatas ka pa sa labi, iho. Do you really believe Noynoy Aquino was not aware that his own relatives were double-crossing Roxas?”
“Of course, Noynoy would deny it,” butts in Gerry.
“Isn’t that what Aquino does all the time?” snaps Ka Danny. “He denied knowing that the SAF troopers were being massacred in Mamasapano. He denied bribing the senators to impeach Corona. He denied knowing about the pork barrel scandal and that the DAP was unconstitutional.”
“Imposibleng hindi alam ni Noynoy that his own camp was promoting Binay. Even his own sisters were for Binay,” says Johnny who has been listening quietly from another table. “Lahat ng tao sa Pilipinas, alam. Si Aquino pa?”
I finally manage to put in a word edgewise.
“What do you think will Mar Roxas do about it? The rumored double-cross, I mean.”
Johnny holds up a FilAm newspaper. “According to the papers, Roxas already called on those in the Liberal Party who are supporting his rivals to speak out. Sabi pa niya, if they are supporting someone else, thank you na lang daw.”
“Isn’t that a very passive statement?” I ask.
Ka Danny shakes his head. “Poor Mar Roxas. There’s really nothing he can do at this point. If he breaks away from Aquino because of the double-cross todas siya. The funding could be cut off.”
“What funding?” I ask.
“The Bottom Up Budgeting funds and the Yolanda funds that are controlled by the LP,” says Ka Danny, sounding as if he knew exactly what he was talking about. “Siyempre, hawak pa rin ni Noynoy iyong susi sa kaban.”
“So what do you think will Roxas do?” asks Jimmy, giving away his naivete.
Pete has a mischievous glint in his eyes when he butts in. “What do you think does a wife do when she finds out that her husband has a Number Two, este, Number One-A? She either leaves the husband or she accepts it as a fact of life and makes the most of it, hindi ba?”
“Aywan ko,” is my response. “Maybe Erap Estrada can answer that.”
Ka Danny heaves a knowledgeable sigh. “In Philippine politics, they call it gamitan. Meaning, everyone is using everyone else. Roxas will continue to use whatever support Aquino will give him because that’s better than nothing. Of course, if Roxas wins, todas naman si Aquino. Roxas will get back at him for the double-cross.”
“And what about Poe? Asks Johnny.
“Siyempre, Roxas will do everything to make Poe lose. Who do you think has been putting out the stories about Poe using an illegal social security number in America?”
“Pero, that’s true, isn’t it?” asks Jimmy.
Ka Danny lightens up at this new topic. “Let me give you the lowdown on that,” he says. “Alam mo iyang si Grace Poe…”
There is a conspiratorial look in Ka Danny’s eyes, as if he doesn’t want everyone to hear what he is about to say.
Ka Danny seems to know everything about Philippine politics. He should be a Manila columnist. (gregmacabenta@hotmail.com)
