A soldier as president

History has been extremely kind for the bold. European and Asian histories have seen ascensions by strong willed individuals whom the public adore yet the elites despise. I will not cite case histories here because if you read a lot, you'll know what I mean.

In my later blog, I said that the present crop of political parsonages suffer from lack of political differentiation. I cited the Liberal Party as one example. Though it has a fresh lineup of young blood, the party still lacks concrete image branding in the minds of the people. Yes, it positions itself as an antithesis to the NP and even Lakas. Yet, it does not do enough to position itself away from its category of being a traditional political party.

What the recent 2006 elections show us is that cheating and election manipulation prove ineffective when a party positions itself as a movement for reforms. The campaign of Trillianes is a brilliant case study. Despite the lack of campaign funds, it won the elections because election cheaters fear for their lives if they cheat Trillianes of his well-deserved victory and the overwhelming numbers of people who voted for him destroyed whatever sinister cheating plans or machinery they have against him. The LP can win like this but they need to differentiate themselves from the rest of the flock if they want to avert a loss.

The possibility of having a former soldier as president remains strong. What would prevent the Magdalo from launching a presidential campaign for Trillianes? Nothing except Arroyo. The Magdalo could register as a political movement and take on these trapo parties come 2010. First, they are differentiated in the minds of the people. Second, they have a cause. And third, this cause actually animates every Filipino mind.

One question though--momentum. The Bagong Katipunan has momentum cut out for it come the first quarter of January or even February. They have two options which they can use--either go for the jugular early on or wait for 2010. If they wait, many things could happen which could destroy momentum. In politics, which they have elected unwittingly or wittingly to participate, anything could happen. Fortunes change in a flicker. They could be rendered irrelevant in 2010 or maybe not. What is certain is that, they should not be blind to the opportunities God has presented to them now. Before the year ends, they should meet and talk about what they'll do in 2008.