Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar and his crew came in a uniform attire of orange shirt with blue collar for the luncheon with the Cebu media yesterday, Saturday. Even the balloons were orange.

Campaign colors or the colors picked by the probable presidential candidates to represent their campaigns for the 2010 general elections are starting to come out. And the varying colors, if put together, could put a fiesta preparation to shame, but the political implications of an array to mimic a rainbow can mean no clear delineation between red, blue, yellow, green and orange.

Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III of the Liberal Party is comfortable with wearing the colors of his parents, national martyr Ninoy and the late president Corazon Aquino. The rise of the son as a candidate for next year’s polls is seen as a continuation of the “yellow fever” started by his parents.

Villar of the Nacionalista Party has reportedly dubbed his campaign an orange revolt. He didn’t say why he chose orange but the color can mean power, passion, enthusiasm, youth and creativity. He did take potshots at Aquino for his inexperience and his use of his parentage during the forum. Villar in effect showed how orange can be hot yellow or a combination of red and yellow or partly yellow.

Campaign colors are meant to represent the candidate’s platform and character, but their use can be subject to many interpretations.

Sen. Loren Legarda of the Nationalist People's Coalition party uses green to highlight her pro-environment platform. When speculation was rife that a Villar-Legarda tandem was in the offing, she reportedly said the colors orange and green go well together.

In the United States, the two-party system makes the color symbolism very traditional. Color (RED)is for Republicans and blue for the Democrats. Other governments have red for liberal groups and blue for conservatives.

Color meanings can be stretched to the extremes. In the case of the media, the issue of impartiality becomes crucial in the election coverage. This extends, whether consciously or not, to the journalists’ attire when they cover political camps.

You would have second thoughts about wearing a yellow shirt with a Philippine map on the left breast side when attending a press conference of Villar. Such shirts are commercially available but Aquino and running mate Sen. Mar Roxas have placed their claim over the color and shirt design.

Like pictures, colors can have meanings. Candidates have to be clear on the message they want to promote based on the color representations of their campaigns.

Otherwise, the colors are purely for display and do not mean anything about the promise of better governance. What’s left to matter is the way the colors are worn or the personalities who wear them. Then it’s back to the ever-familiar personality-based brand of politics.

(ninicab@sunstar.com.ph)