The revolution is over. That’s how GMA News should have headlined their story Philippine left backs Villar, Loren
After months of courtship, presidential candidate Manuel Villar of the Nacionalista Party (NP) succeeded in getting the support of the leftist group Makabayan.
Senatorial aspirants Bayan Muna Satur Ocampo and Gabriela Rep. Liza Maza on Monday officially joined the NP senatorial ticket as “guest candidates.”
Ocampo and Maza bring with them the support of the eight party-list groups under Makabayan–Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Anakpawis, Kabataan, Katribu, Migrante, Courage, and the Alliance of Concerned Teachers.
It is the first time that the leftist alliance is officially supporting presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
Ang daming namatay, napatay, na torture, na kidnap, na disappear para sa rebolusyong makabayan, tapos ang patutunguan din pala ng rebolusyon ay pagsanib puwersa kay Manny Villar at Loren Legarda.
Gusto ko sanang isipin na hindi alam ng kaliwa kung anong klaseng mga tao yan si Villar at si Legarda pero kung iisipin ko yun eh para ko na rin sinabi na tanga sila. Eh, alam ko naman hindi sila tanga.
“Ganun kalaki ang pagtingin namin sa mga kandidatong ito,” said Ocampo’s colleague in Bayan Muna, Rep. Teodoro Casiño.
Ano ka ba Teddy, lasing o bangag?
Nakakatawa sana ang pangyayari – Ipinagpalit ng kaliwa ang Rebolusyonaryong Daan para sa Daan Hari -pero sobra na ang dami ng dugong dumanak para matawa tayo.
Sabi ni Liza Maza: “Maganda kung makuha ni Bongbong(Marcos) ang pagkakataon na ma-settle ito. It’s a good opportunity to heal that past.”
Liza, wala naman kailangan i-heal kay Bongbong dahil hindi naman siya yun tatay niya. Hilo ka ba?
Kung sabagay okay lang kung ang kaliwa ay bumitaw sa rebolusyon. Magiging mapayapa ang bayan natin. Okay din kung gusto nila maging Nacionalista.
Ocampo called the partnership a “mutual adoption” of platforms: Makabayan adopts the NP’s platform while the NP adopts Makabayan’s platform.
Ang tanong ko lang sa kaliwa ay kung okay sa kanila si Villar bakit hindi okay sa kanila si Gloria?
Hindi yata nila nahahalata na ang pinagkaiba lang ni Villar kay Gloria ay nunal sa mukha!
Hindi ko kilala si Liza Maza pero kaibigan ko si Satur. My heart bleeds for my friend.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Politicians and revolutionaries are of the same feathers. They change
and become one of those they fight against. The Bolshevists of the
Russians Communists revolutions. Became ruling Politburo Aristocracies. Chinese Mao Tse Tung revolutionaries became the capitalists of the world. More capitalist than any country.
Why would you be surprised with the moves of Bayan Muna. Their radicalism is now tempered with the pays, perks and allowances since
becoming Filipino politicians. The more things change. The more they
remain the same. Especially in Philippine politics.
Pera lang pala ang solution di pa sinabi agad para natapos na noon iyan.
Well said, hayden.
just looking at the local scene, didnt we had a goosebump when we had the Cory’s people power? or when Erap won by the largest margin? didnt some of us had a misty eye as GMA swear as a replacement?
We thought that those events would bring noticeably better changes but all failed.
The Communist Party and NPA was the true opposition but since their vacillation (cold feet) in 1986, they lost their reason for existence. Ocampo and Masa are the evidence for that.
I became also one of them. I was a radical during my student
days. Now, I am promoting capitalism as a capitalist myself.
I own a business. So far, so good. Better than taking refuge
in those mountains. Come down from the mountains, all of you. Life is better in the corporate and Philippine Political worlds. You never had it so good. If JOMA could enjoy his stay in Amsterdam. Why would you sacrfice to live in those God forsaken mountains… Life is short. Especially, if those
army people are hunting you down!
Kapag nanalo si Villar ambassador sa Netherlands si Joma.
Shortest tactical alliance ever…
Still on the plus side if Noynoy does win(still the likeliest outcome) at least we’d say we didn’t vote for Noynoy. Small consolation but hey.
Useless people. But put yourselves in their shoes. Imagine spreading ideology in a country that has become immune to ideas… not just ideology or ideals but the grain that makes up human thought. Eat, drink, screw, earn money. That’s the life of a Filipino.
Ano na nga pala ang role ni Jamby?
Tatkbo sya as a token resistance to Manny?
Bakit di sa kanya lumapit sina Satur di ba panay ang punta nya sa Netherlands dati ?
kung pera-pera di ba mapera din sya?
“Ipinagpalit ng kaliwa ang Rebolusyonaryong Daan para sa Daan Hari…”
Hhhmmm, bakit si Joma Sison lang ba ang puwedeng magkaroon ng enlightened self-interest.
If we want the Philippine left to become part of the political mainstream, more particularly if we want to elect leftist senators, there is no other way AT THIS POINT but to forge alliances with the major opposition political parties. So that leaves us with the LP and NP.
Between the two, it was NP that showed genuine interest in such an alliance and even went out of its way to craft a public document reflecting what was common in our platforms (“In Response to the People’s Concerns”). The LP was not interested for various reasons. And so that is that.
Left is not exactly extreme left. And Nacionalistas are like our conservative party. There’s an absolute contrast in principles.
If you’re saying the communists are simply left of center, I do not believe you at all. Layo talaga. Parang sinabi mo si Hillary at si Obama katulad ni Stalin at ni Mao.
But maybe it’s a signal? Is the communist insurgency over? Inform nyo naman mga walang alam sa bundok para bumaba na sila.
Unanag una ang “leftist” dito sa Pilipinas synonymous yan ng communist diba. It’s not the same leftist na social democracy, right?
Ito ang Philippine left: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maoist
Hindi ito: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leftist
Correct me if I’m wrong.
At pucha pati si GMA kung tanungin mo Social Democrat din yan.
sorry, sleepy. I mean synonym yan ng communism.
Teddy,
I was one of the very first (and the very first from the YS) who entered Bataan during the factionalism of Bill and Caring in Central Luzon in 1997. Juanito Carabeo aka Toktok was once of my dearest friends. As I remember, one of the main points heavily criticized by the SGRM was the participation of the ND movement during the 1987 elections. And as I remember, it was heavily streesed out in the SGRM documents that the ND movement should never join any elections nor support any reactionary candidates.
Maybe the answer doesn’t matter to me now as I have completely shifted my beliefs from left to right but I’d like to think that during my time with the movement, I did something worthwhile. I hate thinking that all my sacrifices had been for naught.
darwin:
the ND movement did not participate in the 1982 snap elections and lost the political momentum in achieving a national democratic state along the lines of Vietnam and PRC.
this led to the oligarchs hijacking the coalitions painstakingly built by the broad militant mass movement. these networks have been transformed from genuinely empowered people’s organizations into vote farms for political operators like Drilon and Abad because of the Left’s hesitance to get involved in electoral politics.
Bayan Muna, however, has no exclusivity when it comes to the Philippine Left.
AkBayan is also in the Left, but is involved as a party-list group.
Sorry I was talking of the mainstream left which is the ND movement. Yes, the ND movement did not field candidates during the 1986 snap elections. But they did field candidates during the 1987 elections for the senatorial seats and candidates for the lower posts.
I don’t see anything wrong in the alliance. They have the same goal, so why not forge an alliance? I commend Sen. Villar because he’s the only one who has united “the left and the right”. He’s really a leader. Compared to Noynoy who was not able to convince Serge to join his party again, at least Villar proved he can unite conflicting forces. lol!
Haaaay…politics. Madali kasing makalimot ang mga tao. Pero kung tutuusin, hindi naman kasalanan ni Bongbong ang kasalanan ng tatay niya, di ba? Bakit naman kailangang magalit kay Bongbong? Ang maganda sa partido ay na-set aside nila yung differences nila to achieve the same goal.
Btw, as I read your blog, I remembered how Cory apologized to Erap. I don’t know why.
I hope you’ll be able to explain in your blog what kind of a person Villar is that you see him negatively. Please enlighten me.
Actually, I see Villar as the most qualified presidential candidate in 2010 with his rich leadership and managerial experiences both in business and politics. That’s something that he earned, and no one, not even the camp of Noynoy contests that.
Look deeper. You will see an unethical being using the government funds to enrich himself.
BAYAN MUNA is disenfranchising the Left by representing the Left as social outcasts in congress. Baka binayaran mga ito ng mga mayayaman para madaling i demonize and left of center.
You have no idea what you are talking about. The Philippine left has undergone a series of deadly purges and rectifications among its ranks and if BAYAN MUNA was a sellout, you can brace yourself from another deadly purge, factionalism and rectification among it’s own ranks. And BTW, I would categorize the Philippine left as extreme left i.e, left-wing fundamentalists. Blind followers is one thing the Filipino leftists aren’t.
How do I know? Been there, done that.
It is truly ironic that the Left has been left behind since EDSA 1. The 1987 Constitution, verbose like the Philippine Left during its heyday, is actually a triumph for the Left. Land reform and economic nationalism are hallmarks of the document, prompting free-market ideologues ever since to complain that it is as obsolete as the Berlin Wall. If not for the lingering hangover from the Marcos dictatorship, these economic liberals could have had their way.
Still, if the Constitution represents the distillation of the triumph of the people’s struggles against neo-colonialism and Cold War-inspired authoritarianism before EDSA, the post-EDSA administrations in more ways than one embody the old order’s efforts to stem the tide of social transformation as envisioned by the people when they overwhelmingly ratified the Constitution.
The Left’s growing political clout perhaps is not a historic inevitability as the coming election may probably show. But the end of history may not yet prove a deadend for social reformers who always have history on their side.
Here’s a good read on the Philippine Left – from the PCIJ:
http://www.pcij.org/imag/2004Elections/Campaign/x-men2.html
excerpts: