Tuesday, October 30, 2007 Seares: Did you elect a comedian? By Pachico A. Seares News Sense
THE Archdiocese of Cebu released on the eve of barangay and youth elections some tips on whom to vote for leaders.
The Archdiocese said picking was easier as poll bets were friends or neighbors.
That’s true with small barangays, but not over-populated barangays where few people know other people, and Comelec rules on common poster area and ban on basic propaganda ridiculously don’t work.
Whom do you know ran for barangay captain? Only few are as highly visible and controversial as Jingjing Faelnar or Mary Ann de los Santos or as famous as the suspected dolt who signed up for councilman instead of barangay chief.
Archdiocese advice to check whether candidates are involved in crime, such as gambling and drugs, is welcome. But where could voters have checked? Not the police order of battle (unavailable) or the gossip mill (unreliable).
Not joking
What seems fuzzy is the Archdiocese caution against voting for those “popular with their jokes” and ignoring the “serious and knowledgeable.”
Who are these comedians? Someone made a much-talked-about joke recently but he’s in Congress and he wasn’t joking, he was probably lying.
Nothing wrong with voting for candidates with sense of humor, who crack jokes but are not themselves a joke. At least, they won’t be as dull as some “serious and knowledgeable” people who fill legislative councils and pulpits.
More useful would have been data as to who funded whose campaign. Money givers pull strings of would-be stooges — and stooges are worse than comedians.
