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Tuesday, March 15, 2005
Malilong: Family affair
By Frank Malilong
The Other Side
Feuding cousins Sonny and Tommy Osmeña have finally found a common activity after a long, long time: waving the Gabby bogy on Eddie Gullas.
Gabby is none other than incumbent Cebu City Councilor Gabriel Leyson, who is ironically, related to both Osmeñas and to Eddiegul. Handsome even in his (comparatively) late age, Gabby bears no resemblance whatsoever to the grotesque, supernatural creature that a goblin is supposed to be but in this rare co-production between estranged cousins, looks are irrelevant. Power is.
Gabby is a rich landowner with vast holdings in Cebu City’s southeastern neighbor. The way Sonny and Tommy figure it (separately as of the moment), that is more than enough to instill fear in the hearts of Gullas and his band about the hour of reckoning madly ticking when they shall receive their just desserts for their insolence.
All right, I’ll put it simply. Tommy is mad at Gullas for claiming that a portion of the South Reclamation Project (SRP) is part of the territory of Talisay. Sonny is just as angry but for another reason: he believes that Gullas “fooled” his son John-John into running for governor, only to abandon the latter.
To get even with the first district solon, Tommy says he will field Leyson against incumbent Mayor Soc Fernandez, a Gullas ally. Sonny seconds the motion and throws a wicked jab along the way: he will convince Tommy’s sister Minnie to contest Eddiegul’s reelection in 2007.
Gabby and Minnie have their own endearing qualities, I am sure. They could make good leaders, perhaps better than Soc and Eddiegul or, for that matter, Sonny and Tommy. It is therefore unsettling, to say the least, that the Osmeña cousins should draft them for the wrong reasons.
What will Gabby tell the people of Talisay if and when he campaigns? That he is on an errand for Tommy to punish Soc for agreeing with Eddiegul to pursue Talisay’s claim for a portion of the SRP? Or that Sonny has asked him to avenge John-John’s defeat in the 2004 elections?
They’re not quaking in their boots, Gullas said in a statement issued by his office yesterday. Why should they? The election of mayor and congressman will be decided by the people of Talisay and of the first district, respectively.
What makes Tommy and Sonny think that they can just pluck anyone and convince the people to vote for him?
A reality check could be in order.
(March 15, 2005 issue)
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