BALAMBAN Councilor Dave Karamihan described himself as “Gibnoy” in my recent Facebook chat with him. He is torn between Lakas-Kampi’s Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro and Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III on the matter of which presidential bet he will support.

Dave heads the committee that handles the annual Manunggal trek.

I understand Dave. Many mayors, governors and congressmen, including those in One Cebu, are with the Arroyo administration and are thus committed to the Teodoro candidacy. But that he is also attracted to the Noynoy bid speaks a lot of the kind of pull Aquino has. A loyal soldier like Dave will probably end up supporting Gibo, though.

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Dave, a relative of Balamban Mayor Alex Binghay, is running for vice mayor of the town, a step up from his current position.

I think he is ready for it considering his educational background and intellect, things he can put to good use in presiding over the town council. Which reminds me of the candidacy of another dynamic young man.

Sectoral groups and non-government organizations (NGOs) recently formalized the lobby to include Luz Barangay Captain Nida Cabrera and Center for Participatory Governance’s Alvin Dizon in the Bando Osmena-Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) slate for Cebu City councilor. I expected that. Alvin’s plan was floated in Facebook months ago.

I know Alvin from way back when he was, I think, still fresh from college and had just plunged into organizing work. I would rate the circle Alvin is in as moderate in terms of militance so I think he can survive in a local government ruled by one man, Mayor Tomas Osmeña. Alvin is less radical than another friend, Arman Perez (hmmm).

What should convince the mayor to take in Alvin is the support he could get from people’s organization and NGOs. At this stage, Alvin has a bigger base than my ka-barangay, Councilor Edwin Jagmoc, when he first ran for the Council. Compared with the other “counciloriable,” Alvin has a better grasp of the needs of barangay folks.

Getting BOPK’s support, however, is no assurance of winning considering the current political setup in the city. Osmeña is banned from running for mayor and is ill, and the candidacy of his anointed, Michael Rama, may not get the total support of the party’s other leaders. Also, many personalities are planning to run for Cebu City mayor.

The latest entrant could be Government Service Insurance System president Winston Garcia, brother of Gov. Gwen Garcia, although I think former mayor Alvin Garcia will have a say on that.

With former senator John Osmeña and his cousin Georgia, that makes four mayoral bets. That muddles the setup and makes the election interesting.

Winston’s candidacy is particularly noteworthy considering people’s negative perception of him as GSIS head. He has been blamed for whatever suffering GSIS pensioners went through during his stint and the anger is palpable. Those complaints will hound his candidacy and many people doubt if he can overcome the negativity and win.

Still, a contest among Rama, Georgia, Sonny and Winston could take an anybody-could-win-it turn. Rama’s stock has lowered considerably since he endured Tomas insults like a loyal itoy and he could split BOPK leaders. His being a weak bet raises the chances of winning of the three other candidates. I never thought the city’s elections could end up being as unpredictable as this.

(khanwens@yahoo.com/ my blog: cebuano.wordpress.com)