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Thursday, January 08, 2004
Wenceslao: Sheryn, guv, Junie
By Bong Wenceslao
I could understand the frustration-ringed pain felt by Cebuana Sheryn Mae Regis when she lost in ABS-CBN’s “Star in a Million” singing competition last Saturday. When her name was called as second placer, Sheryn looked lost, turned to her right and cried as host Edu Manzano embraced her. This as winner Erik Santos celebrated.
There is always pain when one loses in a closely fought contest, especially with the stake as high as P1 million, house and lot and a singing career. But it probably was more so for the Cebuana, who topped every rung in the stepladder competition, only to lose to an apparently favored (for his looks?) rival that clearly has lesser singing talent.
And this kind of reaction is true not only in a high profile singing contest but also in politics, even if most politicians have already mastered the poker-faced look. Consider recent developments in Cebu province where a Sheryn-like situation happened during the deadline of the filing of certificates of candidacy for the May elections.
But first, some backgrounders. For sometime, Gov. Pablo Garcia, who is supporting the candidacy of his daughter Gwen as Capitol’s top gun, has been battling with Agriculture Undersecretary Celestino “Junie” Martinez Jr. on who will be declared official candidate by the administration party Lakas-CMD for the said post.
Like Sheryn, the Garcia and Martinez camps were confident of their chances, only to lose the closely fought contest to Vice Gov. John Gregory “John-john” Osmeña, who is not a Lakas member, being a recruit of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC). I could just imagine the frustration of guv and Junie at the decision of the Lakas leadership.
Of course, John-john’s taking the Lakas standard-bearer tag is not because he is better prepared (I think Martinez is) or that he is the better talent (Gwen and Junie can also stake a claim to that). As in Sheryn’s case, preparation and talent did not matter. Rather, it was the behind-the-scene maneuvering that dictated the outcome.
For ABS-CBN bigwigs, the “Star in a Million” program was not mainly about choosing the better singer but about building up a new star. Here, other factors like physical attributes get more consideration. With a handsome contestant like Santos, the network now has, as Sheryn surmised, a new “Martin Nievera” to market.
As for Lakas leaders, choosing a standard bearer for Cebu governor was not about who was the most loyal, who was the best prepared or who had the most potential. It was about maintaining the coalition with NPC and getting John-john’s father, Sen. John “Sonny” Osmeña to join the senatorial slate of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
What this just shows is that whether in business or in politics, a brutal reality exists. If one expects fair dealing all the time, one will be frustrated. Sheryn’s case was all about ratings and marketing goals. The case of Garcia and Martinez was all about getting political advantage. And others have a euphemism for these: pragmatism.
P.S. Here’s a good advice from Text Reax contributor Douie Mercado: “The secret of being young? Sleep the right number of hours. Go with the right crowd. Eat the right food and…Give the wrong age. Enjoy life!”
(e-mail: cowens21@lycos.com; text: 0927-4912362)
(January 8, 2004 issue)
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