MANNY Pacquiao took time off from a commercial shoot in Jakarta to visit Mary Jane Veloso in death row. His camp lost no time in letting the media know that the boxing champion wept when she met the convicted drug mule. He was moved by her faith, the Inquirer dramatically reported the encounter.
Hail, Pacquiao for senator!
He will, in all likelihood, win. His record in the House of Representatives may be outstanding only in his frequent absences from the session but who cares? If you can elect a second-rate actor to the Senate, why not a boxer, who is at least one of the best, if not the best (sorry, Floyd), in his craft?
In fact, he could win the vice presidential contest, too if only he were eligible to join it. United Nationalist Alliance?s Jejomar Binay, the only declared presidential aspirant so far, seriously considered Pacquiao for running mate until he was reminded that the latter would still be some three years away from his 40th birthday on the day of the 2016 election.
You only have to be 35 years old on the day of the election to be voted senator. Oh yes, you are also required to know how to read and write, and be a natural born Filipino citizen, a registered voter and a resident of the Philippines for at least two years before election day.
Pacquiao meets all these requirements and because we are who we are, he will, as surely as we will have El Ni?o this October, be one of the 24 members of the chamber–which was once was inhabited by the likes of Claro M. Recto, Lorenzo Ta?ada, Jovito Salonga and Jose W. Diokno–for six years starting at noontime of June 30, 2016.
Let?s just pray that even if he doesn?t contribute much to the discussion, he will not leave his hallowed chair unoccupied for extended periods. No, please, not like in the House.
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Yes, they can and will fight City Hall.
Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama?s ?are they declaring war against City Hall?? was a rhetorical question. He already knew the answer. ?They? had just sued him in court for the demolition of their perimeter fence some two years ago.
Whether they will win is an altogether different matter. The Cebu Port Authority may prevail in the court case but the mayor can make life difficult for them. With City Hall?s vast powers and resources at his command, Rama has a thousand and one ways to do it.
Two can play the game, though. The CPA tried not to make it personal by asking only for the quieting of title and the cancellation of the tax declaration that the city assessor issued in the name of the city over the Compania Maritima Bldg.
But the allegation in the CPA complaint, that Sun.Star Cebu quoted yesterday, bears watching. ?Clearly, the City of Cebu and the city mayor illegally usurped CPA?s property and scoured at its authority,? it said. When you read ?usurpation? and ?authority? in the same sentence, doesn?t it remind you that the Office of the Ombudsman or the Office of the President isn?t too far away?
Rama said he and the CPA had already come to a ?better agreement? on how to deal with the Compania Maritima building issue. Alas, his ?better? doesn?t seem to be good enough for the CPA. Otherwise, they wouldn?t be suing two years after the agreement was struck.
You can?t fight City Hall, we?ve always been told. Obviously, there are exceptions to the rule such as when you have the resources to wage a ?bloody? and protracted war.
