Thursday, October 04, 2007 Editorial: Just sickening parochial politics
NOTHING out of the ordinary happened in last Monday's session or so Councilors Ian Mark Nacaya and Roger Abaday said in separate radio interviews following the reports that they nearly came to blows following the latter's snide remark over Nacaya's father-in-law presiding over the recent session.
That was in effect the spark that provided the near fisticuffs or as both of these men clarified the "heated exchange" that caused some of their colleagues to intervene lest it results in a real brawl.
Whether there was any near-altercation at all or nothing is up to them since they apparently apologized to each other and all's well for them and the council as of now.
Then again that appears to be the mode of conduct being taken by the political opposition who simply cannot crack through the seemingly impregnable wall of the majority Padayon Pilipino party even if from a solitary voice in the wilderness the opposition has become a trio doing legislative battle against the 13 Padayon colleagues topped by the latter group's "alas" or ace who is Vice-Mayor Vicente Emano.
Thus they resort to these street tactics of provocation if only to get the ire of the Padayon Pilipino councilors whom they accuse of bowing down to their master's every whim and fancy, despite the fact that their patron prefers to stay away from the arguments and debates at the City Council session for reason that he cannot stand what he described as "the politicking" of his political opponents.
This even if Emano is guilty of the same politicking that he accuses his political rivals of doing.
But then that is what's wrong with this city's political landscape where both administration and opposition politicos engage in one upmanship and intrigues all in the name of gaining the upper hand and eventually toppling the powers that be or perpetuating themselves in power in the case of Emano and his ilk.
Take the case of Emano's protege, Cagayan de Oro 1st District Representative Rolando Uy who plans to run as Carmen barangay chairman for reasons unknown.
Prevailing public perception is that he either cannot hack it as congressman or he simply wants to extend his power base, dropping the barangay chairman post to his son and returning to Congress where perhaps his only justification for his continuing assumption is by allotting pork barrel funds to his employers, namely the city residents of the first district of Cagayan de Oro.
Or he can return to his post as barangay chairperson and allow the second placer, former Vice-Mayor Michelle Tagarda-Spiers, to assume the congressional post in order to return to Emano's good graces.
So they're all the same--both the administration and opposition politicos are trying to one-up each other in this sick game called politics.
