by Ram Maxey
IN less than a month from today, the whole country will know who won and who lost in the 2010 elections. That’s taking for granted that the automated polls will be a success. Otherwise…!!!
There will be a lot of post mortems on what went wrong in the campaign for votes of the losers even as the victors shall be all but overwhelmed with euphoria. As the saying goes: Nobody loves a loser. In the subsequent analysis of a candidate’s defeat, the debate on the pros and cons of the campaign strategy that backfired can be acrimonious. The bitter thought of all the time, money and effort wasted in quest of victory can be gut-wrenching, especially for those who expected (wrongly, as it turned out) to win.
So, what went wrong when everyone thought everything was going right?
All election campaigns are waged like any war. Such a war will be marked by many battles from as early as the time the candidates first made known their intention of running for elective office by way of their body language and subsequently by the language that spews out of their mouth. Or, should we say, mouthpieces? Ah, there’s the rub. As in all real wars, propaganda plays a large part in the equation, as if you didn’t know.
The 2010 electoral campaign, especially for president and vice president, is noteworthy for the amount of print, radio and television commercials that have been assailing our eyes and ears from the get-go until E-Day itself. Was there ever a Philippine election with so many day-dreamers dreaming such wonderful dreams of becoming president—nine? Or, for vice president—8? That’s the spectacle of the moment in this country. No surprise, there. Lest we forget, this is the Philippines, further, I sayeth not. Amen.
We have a presidentiable who trumpets his wealth, having warned that anyone who does not have the millions to wage a credible campaign ought not to run, period. This billionaire, who claims he rose from rags to riches by dint of talent and determination, has the most number of propaganda ads on any given day or night. Lately, after surveys showed his declining popularity, his knee-jerk reaction was to throw more good money after bad with more media exposure. Running scared on cold feet can be a strain on the heart and blood pressure.Doesn’t he realize that, perhaps, more and more people are turned off by his corny ads that insult one’s intelligence? Oh, well. He will still be rich beyond our poor power to comprehend even if he loses this contest.
As for all the other losers, their great-grandchildren will one day read in the history books that their great-grand lolo once upon a time ran for president (or vice president) of this great country. Big deal. Never mind if they lost. Once upon a time.
