Everyone knows that Senator Manny Villar gets so many negative comments in this site. And really those comments express utter dismay especially when Villar was involved in the C-5 road controversy.
Pero, let's be honest. What Villar did today at the Wowowee show of Willie Revillame, giving away six (6) house and lots to these OFWs, really got my vote. As a former Overseas Filipino Worker myself, I can't help but admire Villar's act. At least, he did his part. Call it a political propaganda. Call it a publicity coup. Call it whatever you want. But, one can't just dismiss what he did today.
That's the way to go for Senator Manny Villar. People who aspire that top post should act now, not later. I just hope that he continues to do what he did today. People, especially OFWs, really need help. I did when I was in Singapore. Working abroad is not just like eating apple pie. It's really hard work. And for some, depressing.
I hope other presidential aspirants help our people now.
Let me ask you to imagine something for just a minute.
ReplyDeleteImagine PGMA doing the exact same thing on Wowowee. She gives away 6 house&lot packages to OFWs, with complete undisputable support/endorsement by Willie. Does SHE get your vote now? Is that how you pick your president? If Mar Roxas gives away 12 Toyota Fortuners to 12 very young, hard-working padyakito boys, who will get your vote now?
Why should we let Villar buy the collective Filipino vote for the price of 6 houses? Why should you let him buy the presidency with 6 houses?
Akala Mo: sinsero si Villar,
Yun Pala: binibili niya ang boto nating lahat sa pamamagitan ng "pagbibigay" niya sa Wowowee.
Now do you understand what you've just told us?
This time, let's be really critical of who we will give the highest post in the land. Anybody with an awful lot of money can do what Villar just did. Don't you wish he used the hundreds of millions he has already spent "pre-campaigning" to really help the indigent, the sick who have no medical benefits, farmers and teachers who have the noblest roles in society but are completely unrewarded and unappreciated? Do you want to be just a raffle-ticket-holder for Villar instead (with the hope of winning a house and lot)?
ReplyDeletehi filo,
ReplyDeletei understand what you are saying. I just think that Villar deserves at least a pat in the back for doing this. I've been very fair with presidentiables, even commenting before about Mar Roxas' firmness in his ideological beliefs, Chiz escudero's popularity among the young crowd, Legarda's political plans, Teodoro's intellectual prowess and Vice President Noli de Castro's winnability.
I've always been critical of Villar. Yet, this singular act alone requires great sacrifice, especially for a real estate magnate such as Villar. Nakita mo, parang napilitan pa nga eh.:-)
At least, give me some reason naman to praise him for that's the least he can get from me. :-)
Give him a pat on the back? Go ahead. Praise him? Sure, you do that. Vote for him on the basis of giveaways? Not a chance. Giving him a pat on the back is waaay different from voting for him.
ReplyDeleteNapilitan? Puh-leeze. His "sacrifice" is what we call "acting," and even he can fake sincerity.
He's a cunning businessman. He knows that every investment is justified by an acceptably large return. What do you suppose that return would be when he gets seated in Malacañang? A few billions in gov't spending kickbacks? Several billions? Paano at saan niya babawiin ang ginagastos niya ngayon para makuha ang boto natin?
He's using every marketing tool in the book, and people are falling for it. That's right. He's selling you a product, and when you saw him pick 6 OFWs from the proverbial tambiolo to win the houses suddenly you bought into it?
It's your right to pick him on THAT singular basis, sure. But it's irresponsible to even suggest that people vote on THAT basis. Your article implies it's perfectly okay to swayed by a public display of donation. And it's not okay. That's why I gave you the What If It Were PGMA scenario and the What If It Were Roxas scenario.
As a respected blogger you have a responsibility especially to your young readers to show that the selection process for our country's leadership isn't to be taken lightly or to be oversimplified with picking whoever shells out the most giveaways on national tv.
Don't underestimate your influence - your readers find your writing worthwhile, so you owe it to them to show that you pick your president with at least as much thought as you would in picking your car, your vocation, or your mate. Otherwise it's just not that important enough for you.
filo,
ReplyDeletei obviously did not say that in my entry. The entry was clear " Senator Manny Villar got MY vote". It's my vote, not yours nor other people's vote. And I really did not say that other people vote for him. All I said was he did a good thing, that's it.
It would be different if I wrote " Senator Manny Villar got my vote and OTHERS today." That would have been irresponsible.
Now, like I said, in previous entries I also wrote how Senator Mar Roxas got my vote and how Chiz Escudero also got my vote. Same as Loren's and Noli. In some entries, I also wrote about Teodoro, Panlilio and Erap. They all got my vote.
What am I saying here? Filo, I write it the way I see it. People may not agree, but, I am sorry, that is my opinion. Is it irresponsibility? No. People should realize that what bloggers write in their sites are all THEIR opinions. We don't force people to believe us. That would destroy the very essence of blogging.
Bloggers are not endorsers nor brand champions, no. What we are are writers, journalists, observers.
If you read my earlier posts, you would understand what I really meant by praising Villar, Roxas, Legarda, Chiz, Teodoro, De Castro and in some entries, even Panlilio---I'm just lumping all of them together because really no one stands out.
filo,
ReplyDeletei obviously did not say that in my entry. The entry was clear " Senator Manny Villar got MY vote". It's my vote, not yours nor other people's vote. And I really did not say that other people vote for him. All I said was he did a good thing, that's it.
It would be different if I wrote " Senator Manny Villar got my vote and OTHERS today." That would have been irresponsible.
Now, like I said, in previous entries I also wrote how Senator Mar Roxas got my vote and how Chiz Escudero also got my vote. Same as Loren's and Noli. In some entries, I also wrote about Teodoro, Panlilio and Erap. They all got my vote.
What am I saying here? Filo, I write it the way I see it. People may not agree, but, I am sorry, that is my opinion. Is it irresponsibility? No. People should realize that what bloggers write in their sites are all THEIR opinions. We don't force people to believe us. That would destroy the very essence of blogging.
Bloggers are not endorsers nor brand champions, no. What we are are writers, journalists, observers.
If you read my earlier posts, you would understand what I really meant by praising Villar, Roxas, Legarda, Chiz, Teodoro, De Castro and in some entries, even Panlilio---I'm just lumping all of them together because really no one stands out.
Pat, oh dear Pat.
ReplyDelete--- PART ONE OF TWO (First 4 of 7 Key Points) ---
Point #1:
Actually Pat, you did. You didn’t go explicit like “Hey guys, go vote for Villar,” but you did say, on your big headline no less, the very clear “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today.” There’s just no other way to interpret that. You can’t vote for Manny AND Chiz AND Mar AND Noli for president, can you?
And nobody’s disputing that you merely spoke of YOUR vote and no one else’s. (Now that we got that out of the way- )
Point #2:
Let me repeat a key point in my previous comment: Do not underestimate your influence as a blogger. You can say “I really did not say that other people vote for him,” but in ANNOUNCING “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today,” you did endorse him to your readers (albeit it wasn’t your intention, as you say), and people could take your word for it, BECAUSE –
Point #3:
Bloggers are influential, in varying degrees. It’s why politicians try to be in their best behaviour when they talk to certain bloggers (Does “Mar Roxas and the Search for the Maginoo” ring a bell?).
You say bloggers aren’t brand champions or endorsers, just writers, journalists, and observers. Come on, Pat! You’re into politics, man! That’s where you’re COMPLETELY, completely mistaken. Being an opinion leader of sorts and being a blogger, are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE pursuits – and you, Pat, of all people, must be keenly aware that writing about politics, with your opinions integrated into it, is a way of endorsing your political preferences, explicitly or otherwise, deliberately or not. You’re not just reporting on the political goings-on; your opinions are everywhere here. (And that’s okay, it’s your blog anyway, but - )
At this point we’ve clearly established that bloggers do become endorsers/brand champions/opinion leaders, you included whether you admit it or not. Next point.
Point #4:
Yes that’s true: Bloggers don’t force people to believe them. Who said you do? For that matter, who said you CAN? If advertisers knew a way to FORCE belief onto people through blogging, they’d all be selling breast-enlargement creams to us guys! But seriously-
Strictly speaking, bloggers CAN’T force people to believe if people don’t want to, but people can be (a) swayed, (b) persuaded, (c) enlightened, or even (d) misled, again, deliberately or otherwise. Blogs can do all that. So when people do pay attention to your opinions, then you have the responsibility of being careful about such opinions... most especially for the young and the naive.
-- [continued on part 2] --
--- PART TWO OF TWO (Last 3 of 7 Key Points) ---
ReplyDeletePoint #5:
I Googled your blog as to which articles you explicitly mentioned Mar got your vote as well, or Chiz got your vote, or Loren got your vote. Only Mar was lucky enough for 15 minutes, so to speak, to explicitly “get your vote” in one of your articles.
You may have praised them here and there, but they all weren’t lucky enough to get a headline endorsement from you. Pretty much all the search results showed “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today” sticking out like a sore thumb. If it walks like a duck, and if it sounds like a duck, it must be a duck. (Now now Pat, don’t argue this one just yet. Wait until the last 2 paragraphs I’ve written.)
Point #6:
Your opinions do not exist in a vacuum. They are where people will find them, consume them, develop their own opinions from them (whether they agree with you or not), even spread them.
Doesn’t it alarm you that despite how good a liar Chiz Escudero is (you said it youself that he is one, and I agree), he’s #2 of Ibon Foundation’s recent survey of preferred presidentiables because more and more people are being misled about his true nature? Doesn’t it alarm you more that Villar is #1 in the same study through massive advertising and PR, and WITHOUT even presenting his platform? Aren’t you acutely aware of how your announcement of Villar getting your vote contributes to people’s view of him and his current popularity? Ever heard of people “jumping onto the bandwagon?”
Don’t downplay your writings as merely one man’s opinions; they’re clearly out here in the open for readers to assimilate. And claiming your headline to be simple praise is just plain IRRESPONSIBLE.
Point #7:
Let me quote you on this one because this is borderline ridiculous – “Now, like I said, in previous entries I also wrote how Senator Mar Roxas got my vote and how Chiz Escudero also got my vote. Same as Loren's and Noli. In some entries, I also wrote about Teodoro, Panlilio and Erap. They all got my vote.”
What??? Now that statement right there is irresponsible. Yes, yes, I know you’re entitled to your opinion, especially on your blog, I won’t argue that. But I’ll say it again: That statement was irresponsible.
Now, I need you to recognize that I say these things to you because you seem to have good intentions, and you don’t appear to be some politician’s paid hack. I know of one such blogger who is one of those hacks and is very popular in blog rank. I don’t waste my time commenting at that person’s blog; it’s pointless to engage a politician’s paid hack without throwing in lots of ad hominem stuff. And I hate these hacks because they lie through the teeth.
You, on the other hand, seem to have your heart in the right place, but have a lot to learn about saying exactly what you mean.
Be wary of how you miscommunicate, Pat. You’re in the writing business without an editor, so you should be doubly careful, AND accountable despite your pseudonym. Because if you are, then readers have every reason to listen to you, to believe you, to not doubt you. Agree?
--- PART ONE OF TWO (First 4 of 7 Key Points) ---
ReplyDeletePat, oh dear Pat.
Point #1:
Actually Pat, you did. You didn’t go explicit like “Hey guys, go vote for Villar,” but you did say, on your big headline no less, the very clear “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today.” There’s just no other way to interpret that. You can’t vote for Manny AND Chiz AND Mar AND Noli for president, can you?
And nobody’s disputing that you merely spoke of YOUR vote and no one else’s. (Now that we got that out of the way- )
Point #2:
Let me repeat a key point in my previous comment: Do not underestimate your influence as a blogger. You can say “I really did not say that other people vote for him,” but in ANNOUNCING “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today,” you did endorse him to your readers (albeit it wasn’t your intention, as you say), and people could take your word for it, BECAUSE –
Point #3:
Bloggers are influential, in varying degrees. It’s why politicians try to be in their best behaviour when they talk to certain bloggers (Does “Mar Roxas and the Search for the Maginoo” ring a bell?).
You say bloggers aren’t brand champions or endorsers, just writers, journalists, and observers. Come on, Pat! You’re into politics, man! That’s where you’re COMPLETELY, completely mistaken. Being an opinion leader of sorts and being a blogger, are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE pursuits – and you, Pat, of all people, must be keenly aware that writing about politics, with your opinions integrated into it, is a way of endorsing your political preferences, explicitly or otherwise, deliberately or not. You’re not just reporting on the political goings-on; your opinions are everywhere here. (And that’s okay, it’s your blog anyway, but - )
At this point we’ve clearly established that bloggers do become endorsers/brand champions/opinion leaders, you included whether you admit it or not. Next point.
Point #4:
Yes that’s true: Bloggers don’t force people to believe them. Who said you do? For that matter, who said you CAN? If advertisers knew a way to FORCE belief onto people through blogging, they’d all be selling breast-enlargement creams to us guys! But seriously-
Strictly speaking, bloggers CAN’T force people to believe if people don’t want to, but people can be (a) swayed, (b) persuaded, (c) enlightened, or even (d) misled, again, deliberately or otherwise. Blogs can do all that. So when people do pay attention to your opinions, then you have the responsibility of being careful about such opinions… most especially for the young and the naive.
---[continued in Part Two]---
JUST IN CASE MY PART 1 REALLY DIDN'T REACH YOU, I'M REPOSTING IT FOR GOOD MEASURE:
ReplyDelete--- PART ONE OF TWO (First 4 of 7 Key Points) ---
Pat, oh dear Pat.
Point #1:
Actually Pat, you did. You didn’t go explicit like “Hey guys, go vote for Villar,” but you did say, on your big headline no less, the very clear “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today.” There’s just no other way to interpret that. You can’t vote for Manny AND Chiz AND Mar AND Noli for president, can you?
And nobody’s disputing that you merely spoke of YOUR vote and no one else’s. (Now that we got that out of the way- )
Point #2:
Let me repeat a key point in my previous comment: Do not underestimate your influence as a blogger. You can say “I really did not say that other people vote for him,” but in ANNOUNCING “Senator Manny Villar got my vote today,” you did endorse him to your readers (albeit it wasn’t your intention, as you say), and people could take your word for it, BECAUSE –
Point #3:
Bloggers are influential, in varying degrees. It’s why politicians try to be in their best behaviour when they talk to certain bloggers (Does “Mar Roxas and the Search for the Maginoo” ring a bell?).
You say bloggers aren’t brand champions or endorsers, just writers, journalists, and observers. Come on, Pat! You’re into politics, man! That’s where you’re COMPLETELY, completely mistaken. Being an opinion leader of sorts and being a blogger, are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE pursuits – and you, Pat, of all people, must be keenly aware that writing about politics, with your opinions integrated into it, is a way of endorsing your political preferences, explicitly or otherwise, deliberately or not. You’re not just reporting on the political goings-on; your opinions are everywhere here. (And that’s okay, it’s your blog anyway, but - )
At this point we’ve clearly established that bloggers do become endorsers/brand champions/opinion leaders, you included whether you admit it or not. Next point.
Point #4:
Yes that’s true: Bloggers don’t force people to believe them. Who said you do? For that matter, who said you CAN? If advertisers knew a way to FORCE belief onto people through blogging, they’d all be selling breast-enlargement creams to us guys! But seriously-
Strictly speaking, bloggers CAN’T force people to believe if people don’t want to, but people can be (a) swayed, (b) persuaded, (c) enlightened, or even (d) misled, again, deliberately or otherwise. Blogs can do all that. So when people do pay attention to your opinions, then you have the responsibility of being careful about such opinions… most especially for the young and the naive.
---[continued in Part Two]---
Sorry, but please justify why he got your vote simply by being charitable?
ReplyDeleteA lot of people have been charitable in more ways than one. His actions (as you admit) are obviously for publicity. And to think he aired his give-away at a highly-rated noontime show that many of his target market avidly watch.
You know, after seeing his advertisement all over ABS-CBN, I found his campaign not only pretentious but irritating (You know he wants to appeal to the youth). But have you seen the AKALA MO WEBSITE? Again, it's proof of what he's trying to do, get the POPULARITY vote (Which has never really worked for our country, has it?)
Also, Nokia as a sponsor? so does that mean when he wins, Nokia can ask favors from him? (Just a thought)
Put it this way, I would have been impressed if it was NOT near elections, if he wasn't running for president, and if those Gifts cost him way more than just a small dent on his wallet. Why does it need to be give-aways? Why not Businesses? Why not Jobs? Why not something productive?
I can't see your justification on him winning your vote.
Sa ngayong halalan bago tayo boboto isipin nating mabuti kung sino talaga ang karapat dapat na magiging pangulo sa ating bansa dahil ilang taon tayong titiis sa mga sinungaling pulitiko na hindi naman totoo sa mga pinapangako nilang plataporma.
ReplyDeleteAko ay isang OFW at nadistino sa Riyadh, Saudi Arabia sa kasamaang palad napasama sa recession. Sa pagkawala ng aking trabaho sinubukan kong lumapit sa gobyerno, government officials at pulitiko. Salamat at andyan ang OWWA kahit maliit ang pinautang ay okey na rin. Si Vice President Noli de Castro kahit papano ay nag reply naman sa aking mga sulat. Pero "ang na Villar na yan ni isang reply sa ilang beses ko na sulat sa kanya ay WALA."
Nung una'y noong nagtrabaho pa ako sa Riyadh napatanim kaagad sa isipan ko si Villar dahil nakita ko yung ads niya sa tv ang tungkol sa pagtulong sa mga OFW. Pero 'nung sinubukan kong sumulat para humingi ng tulong sa kanya tulad ng livelihood project para sa mga OFW ni kusing na sulat ay wala. Andyan yung mga website niya, friendster at etc na kung saan sana siya ay makontak pero "wala. " Kahit ngayon ang daming mga Pilipinong OFW ang stranded sa embassy ng Riyadh naghihintay ng mga tulong e..asan ba si Villar?
Dahil itong klaseng pulitiko ay hindi totoo sa mga hangarin niya ang pagtulong sa kapwa kasi nga iba ang hinahangad kundi ang magpapayaman lamang. Kitangkita naman dahil ang pinapayaman niya ay ang kanyang negosyo. Kaya yung 1 bilyon nagasto niya sa tv ads ay kanyang babawiin pag manalo sa halalan. Nakakapangilabot yung mga tv ads niya ginagamit ang issue ng mga OFW, mga bata sa kahirapan etc. Kaya todo kampanya ang trapong Villar na 'to lahat na mga sikat kinuha si pacquiao, willie at iba pang mga sikat na artista basta ang sa kanya ay manalo lamang siya bahala na anong mangyari kay Juan.
Dito mo makikita na walang tiwala sa sarili dahil ang magpapanalo lamang sa kanya ay nakasalalay sa mga taong sikat sa lipunan. Ito lang ang masasabi ko, subukan nyo munang kilitisin bago magpasya para sa iboboto. Subukan munang humingi ng tulong , sumulat sa kanya "ay ewan...malaking tatlong question mark??? ang sagot dyan. At kung sasagot man 'yan ay sigurong natatauhan na iyan at pinipili lang ang tutulungan para magamit niya sa kanyang hangarin...