Saturday, March 03, 2007 Nalzaro: Is the governor inconsistent? By Bobby Nalzaro Saksi
GOV. Gwendolyn Garcia earlier said that her camp does not need to affiliate itself to a national party because the administration party Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) did not give her the full support and the needed help in the effort to keep Cebu province united.
This was the reason used by the governor in explaining the founding and the subsequent launching of her group, the One Cebu party.
Before that, the Garcias bolted Lakas, Gwen’s party when she first ran for governor in 2004, because of what she said was the party’s lack of support for the development programs of the province. She also lamented the fact that some of the members of Lakas in the House of Representatives supported the three bills that sought to split Cebu into four provinces.
The governor’s brother, Capitol consultant Pablo John Garcia, said in an interview before the launching of the One Cebu party that in the current situation, it should be the national parties that should seek the support of, or even bow down to, the local parties and not the other way around. This is because national parties need local leaders to campaign for their candidates running for national posts.
Gwen, however, made it clear that while she has disassociated herself from Lakas, she will remain loyal to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Well, I would say Gwen was correct in her decision. However, recent developments show some inconsistencies in the governor’s stand. Just this week, the governor and her political lieutenants went to Manila and while there were sworn in as allies of the other party supporting the President, the Kabalikat ng Masang Pilipino (Kampi).
Gwen explained that she chose to have One Cebu affiliate with Kampi because the national grouping and her local party shared the same “mission and vision.” I could not buy that because “missions and visions” are only found in the corporate world, not in Philippine politics.
Maybe Garcia was talking about the “mission and vision” of traditional politicians. I am referring to the practice of politicians of joining political parties for convenience and not based on principles and personal conviction.
Look at what happened in the senatorial election. Sen. Ed Angara, comedian Tito Sotto and “Dancing Queen” Tessie Aquino-Oreta were with the opposition before and even joined the oust-Arroyo movement. Now, they are with the Team Unity slate of the administration.
What they did was simple political turncoatism. They are political butterflies.
