“IT’S TIME for change. Time for new faces. Time for renewal. And this is the moment.” Thus intoned Monico Puentevella during the opening salvo of his party’s bid to take the Bacolod City Hall from Grupo Progreso. His opponent is Vice Mayor Jude Thaddeus Sayson for mayor.
Change as a political battle cry is of course, an imitation of the first campaign of US President Barack Obama. While it was appropriate for Obama after the Republicans had controlled the White House for two successive presidents, the copy cat of Puentevella can hardly fit into the situation similar to that of Obama. It does fit, however, for a different reason. Puentevella had been changing parties and companions every election, not because he changed the people with him but his companions abandoned him for his kind of butterfly politics. In 2001 when he first ran for congressman of Bacolod, Greg Gasataya and Alex Paglumotan were with him. Alex, though not a candidate at the time so hammered Puentevella’s opponent that we can say without reservations that Alex tirade against then Cong. John Orola was devastating. Alex got a position in the government but soon left and began to fire his guns against Puentevella, so damaging that Puentevella failed to dislodge Mayor Evelio Leonardia from the post. In the election of 2004, Sayson and Councilors Dindo Ramos and Homer Bais were with Puentevella’s ticket but soon became estranged that they left Puentevella and joined the camp of Leonardia. Councilors El Cid Familiaran , Archie Baribar, Sonia Verdeflor, Catalino Alisbo and Elmer Sy were with Puentevella in the election of 2010 but got fed up with Puentevella’s kind of political mentality – use people when it suits his purpose. Why did Familiaran (the number one vote getter) and the others leave Puentevella? It is common knowledge that Puentevella changed his allies with somebody “new” for vice mayor. Vladimir Gonzales is really not new, not a new face because he also ran for mayor in 2010 and lost at the tail end, trying to catch up with Puentevella who also lost to Mayor Leonardia. Talks are rife, and not denied that Puentevella junked Baribar (a likely candidate for his vice mayor) because of the belief that Gonzales has the money to bankroll Puentevella’s campaign. It seems that this unholy exchange has flounder because Gonzales, a businessman, is not like to pay for the cost of Puentevella’s campaign. In fact, there are suspicions that Gonzales linked up with Puentevella because the latter has the political machinery that Gonzales needs. But will Gonzales shoulder the entire cost? It seems that there is a “breakdown” within the Puentevella group. This is clear in the tarpaulin posters of Puentevella where he is shown alone with his son (until last week) but not one of the other members of Puentevella’s group. This tarpaulin has given rise to the interpretation that their party’s acronym MKK means, Monico Kag Kalaw (his son). So if change is the battle cry of Puentevella, that change is more of changing people who had worked and allied with him with other has beens. Take a look at the Puentevella’s group. Who are “new” there? His own son is not new but a repeater as the others except for three or four out of twelve. If there is change in his group, it is changing partners for convenience. It is like the rigodon de honor of the colonial times. More to the modern game, it is called, musical chairs by discarding the good ones in favor of those that convenient for the moment’s purpose or those in search of a party. Those who parted with Puentevella are consistent winners. Those within MKK had lost at one time or another. Nothing new, indeed. To me the most tragic in this election is break-up of the Liberal Party in Bacolod but I think to some extent this is providential. The state of the LP in this city exposed its weakness and thus it would be easier to remedy the situation in the future. This is more so with the group of Familiaran and Baribar who appear to have taken the narrow and straight path laid out by their party president. (Just a brief personal note: I am informing the Sa-onoy clan that our reunion that comes every two years will be held on Saturday, April 20 in La Castellana National High School. As traditional each family brings its own food and for those who can afford to bring a little more to share with others. The activities begin at 9:00 in the morning and will end at 3:00 in the afternoon. Try to use the green T-shirt with our clan’s logo. By: Modesto Sa-onoy April 10,2013 12:48 AM
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