Friday, February 02, 2007 Ledesma: Father-daughter By Jun Ledesma Sunbursts
IF WE have to believe newspaper reports, the father-daughter tandem in the mayoral and vice mayoral race is virtually a fait accompli. This will be historic in Davao, and the first of its kind of political partnership as far as I can recall. Against the backdrop of the present rage on political dynasty and the Catholic Bishop of the Philippines abhorrence on the issue, here we are confronted with the stark reality: Mayor Rodrigo Duterte seeking reelection with his daughter Inday Sara as his running mate. With all the aspiring bets making way for Sara anyway you look at it the pairing is a done thing. It is endorsed by Majority Floor Leader Prospero Nograles, the members of the city council are in full accord and even the perceived might-be or would-be adversary of Inday Sara, the repentant Ben de Guzman, is saying that she is qualified for the position - so forget the dynasty issue.
But dynasty as a current political issue is raised to destroy the image of an adversary and, in the case of the mad rush in the opposition ticket, a tool to eliminate a party mate to get to the senatorial ticket of the so-called united opposition. In short, dynasty becomes an abhorrent issue only when this runs counter to the ambition of aspiring politicians. It is an irrefutable fact in Philippine politics as it is with other countries. CBCP forgot that the Holy Bible is replete with dynastic saga from cover to cover, so I do not know how they will reconcile their position with biblical, historical and current events.
The burden of defining political dynasty was passed on to congress by the framers of the Cory constitution precisely because they could have been held hostage on this issue and may not have come up with a charter which, as we realized today, is an orgasmic quickie that sadly had quickly become irrelevant. Unfortunately we don't want out of this predicament, but that is another story.
Today's political dynasties survive because the people willed it. Having Loi and Jinggoy Estrada and JV Ejercito; Pia and Alan Cayetano; Nene and koko Pimentel in the Senate does not render dynasticism bad, it's their lackluster performance. The electorate only deserve their choice and the popish CBCP cannot hope to achieve what they hope to dismantle without first succeeding in their own spiritual and moral quest. It does not necessarily follow that when political dynasties are expunged we will have a new crop of politicians imbued with the mission to serve and not to serve himself. After all is said, it's still a matter of the people's choice, my choice. This is the essence of democracy.
Whether Dabawenyos will vote for Sara to be vice mayor of the city is a matter that only the Davao City electorate will decide. I do not know her except that I know that she is a lawyer. Like many Dabawenyos, I haven't even seen or heard her personally. That's makes her a low-profile daughter of a nationally known political figure. I learned just recently that she opted to work with a firm in Manila which makes her an independent person and not subservient to her father as far as chartering her future is concerned and neither is she anchored by the umbilical cord with her parents for her survival . She would be a reluctant candidate but I think the father knows that she has imbibed the strict discipline of her grandma, Nanay Soling Duterte; the integrity and unblemished record of public service of her lolo, the late Gov. Vicente Duterte; and, the brand of courage and compassion that the mayor is known for. Father knows best.
BTW, it has been days that the venerable Don Francisco Dizon had been laid to rest. Am still receiving calls and emails about his demise. Here's one I want to share to my readers and to the family and friends of late FSD. This one is from Joe Jison, a journalist and one time city councilor of Davao City, who now lives and resides in California. Excerpt of his email follows:
"Dear Jun,
I am terribly sorry for this late response. Thanks for letting me know about the passing of a dear friend, fellow Rotarian and one of Davao's great architects in community building: the inimitable FRANCISCO S. "PACO" DIZON. Kindly extend my sincere condolences to PACITA and BEBOT and the rest of his grieving family. I feel terrible for not having taken leave of business to see Paco during his visits here in California. I never imagined that our lunch at Manila Midtown, advised by Bebot during our flight to Manila from LA, would be our last. We are all in the hands of a loving God; I feel comforted in the certainty that Paco, for all his civism, philanthropy and benevolence, is welcomed into the warm embrace of our merciful, heavenly Father."
