VP bet Fernando shoots funny video for Web

by Edson C. Tandoc Jr.

From Philippine Daily Inquirer
Link: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100411-263615/VP-bet-Fernando-shoots-funny-video-for-Web

MANILA, Philippines—Three weeks after a funny video of presidential candidate Senator Richard Gordon spread on the internet, it's Bayani Fernando's turn to dance and lip-synch with internet comedians Moymoy Palaboy and his brother Roadfill.

Fernando shot a short clip—filmed using a cell phone—on Friday afternoon right after a press conference where Gordon's Bagumbayan Party gathered supporters in a show of force.

It so happened that Moymoy Palaboy, or James Obeso in real life, and his brother Rudolf also attended the press conference to show their support to Gordon's presidential bid.

So, wearing his signature yellow construction hat, Fernando danced with the brothers to the tune of Beastie Boys' "Intergalactic" inside the Barbara's Restaurant, owned by Gordon's sister, in Intramuros, Manila.

The clip will be edited first and is scheduled to be uploaded soon, the duo’s manager Mitch Razote said.

Fernando is known as a singer—he won in GMA7's version of the Celebrity Duets in 2008 and even had concerts with former senator Joey Lina and former energy secretary Angelo Reyes—but he has not been widely seen dancing.

In an earlier interview, Fernando said he could also use his singing skills if he wins as vice president. He said he could provide entertainment in social functions and even wow members of the diplomatic corps and visiting heads of state.

Gibo invades Fernando territory

from The Philippine Star

Link: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=560689&publicationSubCategoryId=65

MANILA, Philippines - Former defense chief and Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential candidate Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro took his campaign sortie yesterday to Marikina City, the bailiwick of former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Bayani Fernando, who bolted the administration party after Teodoro defeated him in the party’s presidential nomination late last year.

Teodoro, whose late grandfather is from Marikina, was welcomed by mayoralty bet Dr. Alfredo Cheng and other local candidates.

“He is the most competent and qualified among the candidates,” said Cheng during a mini-rally in Barangay Calumpang attended by Teodoro, senatorial candidate Rey Langit and Mark Lambino, who represented his father, senatorial candidate Raul Lambino.

Teodoro said all residential development in Marikina should be vertical in order to spare residents from floods. He said this should have been done before but this was not addressed by concerned government agencies, especially those involved in housing development.

The Fernandos have ruled the city for almost a decade and have focused their efforts into converting the city into a tourist attraction.

Pink is out; MMDA going ‘Gibo’ green

By Niña Calleja (Philippine Daily Inquirer) 

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100323-260311/Pink-is-out-MMDA-going-Gibo-green

MANILA, Philippines—“Green” and bear it, BF! Looks like Gibo’s color is taking over your formerly “rosy” turf.

Not only is the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) repainting various road structures from pink to green, but it is also putting up signs trumpeting its new choice of color.

Tarpaulins printed with slogans like “Green is Cool,” “Green Is Go,” Green Is Hope,” and “Green is Clean” would be mounted this week along major thoroughfares, especially along EDSA (Epifanio delos Santos Avenue), to formally launch the agency’s “Go Green Metro” program, MMDA Chair Oscar Inocentes said Monday.

“Green symbolizes environmental growth,” Inocentes said in a statement. “We would like the world to know that through the MMDA, Metro Manila is doing its share to conserve and protect our Earth, our environment.”

He sought the cooperation of the 17 Metro Manila mayors in promoting the agency’s “green ideology.”

NO FREE PASS FOR PRE-CAMPAIGN ADS Top bets liable for breach of ethics; donors for taxes

By Malou Mangahas (Malaya) Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism
http://www.malaya.com.ph/03232010/news4.html

THEY probably thought they got a free pass to flood television with political ads beyond the airtime and spending limits set in law, having run commercials before the 90-day campaign period could start last February 9.

But the top candidates for president and vice president, as well as those who donated and bankrolled their pre-campaign ads, had better think again, according to lawyers and officials of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

By the letter and spirit of anti-graft and tax laws, say the lawyers and tax officials, their pre-campaign period airing of political ads does not free the candidates and their donors of all liabilities.

By PCIJ’s calculations, the combined actual ad spending of six presidential candidates and four vice-presidential candidates from November 1, 2009 to February 8, 2010 comes up to P1.472 billion. By most standards, the amount is huge enough to compromise these candidates, most of whom are incumbent public officials.

The figure is also huge enough to shore up the tax collection drive of the BIR amid the country’s rising fiscal deficit -- if the candidates’ donors have paid taxes.

Just last week, BIR Commissioner Joel Tan-Torres said his agency has collected only P100 million from the five-percent withholding tax slapped on all political contributions and campaign expenditures of candidates during the campaign period.

Vice presidential bets trade barbs in debate

By Aurea Calica – With Perseus Echeminada, Mike Frialde, Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star) 

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=560521&publicationSubCategoryId=63

MANILA, Philippines - Six candidates for vice president traded barbs and grilled each other during a televised debate aired last Sunday night.

Leading vice presidential candidate Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas II of the Liberal Party had a face-off with Sen. Loren Legarda of the Nationalist People’s Coalition and the Nacionalista Party, who criticized her main rival over the expanded value added tax, Cheaper Medicine Law and land distribution.

Legarda was fierce in grilling Roxas, who implied that she was a hypocrite and a political butterfly for transferring to various parties.

The debate dubbed as “Harapan” was organized by ABS-CBN and held at the La Consolacion College in Manila. Members of the audience were each given a “truth meter” and were told to vote on whether the answer of the candidates was “believable” or “not believable.”

Roxas registered high scores on the believability of his answers while Legarda did poorly despite her attacks on the LP bet every chance she got. Roxas laughed off some of the issues raised by Legarda.

Legarda and Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay, the vice presidential bet of Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino, gave dramatic opening and closing remarks to the viewers while former Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Bayani Fernando of Bagumbayan even wore an engineer’s hat to call attention to his training and his qualifications to be vice president.

Election rules on posters Offenders all, Comelec says of major candidates

By Kristine L. Alave (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100320-259769/Election-rules-on-posters

MANILA, Philippines—Equal offenders all.

This was how the Commission on Elections described candidates for national office when it comes to following the law as their political advertisements continue to litter the streets of Metro Manila.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez on Friday said the poll body has found that several presidential, vice-presidential and senatorial candidates have posters and streamers in violation of size limits in the Fair Elections Law.

“We recently went on a drive across the city and we took pictures. It seems that it is widespread and commonplace. It’s not limited to a particular candidate or block. Everyone is equally in violation, it would seem,” Jimenez said.

The rule says that posters should not exceed 2 feet by 3 feet while streamers should be no more than 3 feet by 8 feet.

Oversized

Jimenez said many of the streamers and posters they found during their inspection violated these size limits. Many were also out of place and were posted in public infrastructures.

Jimenez said compliance with the poster regulations has been “dismal.” Candidates do not own up to the violations and blame their supporters for putting up the posters.

But the Comelec will not accept this alibi, he said.

“They must be reminded that according to the implementing rules of RA 9006, a candidate will also be held liable for the violations committed by his supporter,” he said.

Jimenez identified the offending streamers as those of presidential candidates Sen. Noynoy Aquino (Roxas Blvd. cor Vito Cruz); Gilbert Teodoro (Edsa Southbound); Joseph Estrada and Jejomar Binay (Edsa North Ave., Philam); Sen. Richard Gordon; and Sen. Manuel Villar (Edsa cor. Reliance St.).

The rest belonged to vice-presidential candidate Bayani Fernando (Edsa Cubao, and Shell North Luzon Tollway, Burol Balagtas, Bulacan); senatorial candidates Sen. Lito Lapid (Edsa cor. Reliance St.) JV Bautista (Edsa near Nepa Q-Mart) and Rey Langit (in front of the MMDA office near Edsa Guadalupe).

Three days to comply

Jimenez said the Comelec has also received reports that these candidates have been littering the provinces with their propaganda materials.

The candidates have three days from receiving notice to remove the offending materials.

Those found guilty of an election offense face imprisonment up to six years, disqualification from public and government office, and revocation of the right to vote.

Early this week, the Comelec notified Gordon, Fernando and Bangon Pilipinas presidential bet Bro. Eddie Villanueva about removing their giant billboards on South Luzon Expressway, Edsa and Quiapo, Manila, respectively.

Roxas, Binay, Legarda splurge millions on ads

It’s air war for vice prez bets, too
by CHE DE LOS REYES (Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism - Malaya)

http://www.malaya.com.ph/03192010/news8.html


IT’S AN air war for now for the candidates for president; it’s an air war for their running mates, too.

Just like their parties’ standard bearers, the leading candidates for vice president have poured in hundreds of millions of pesos on political advertisements on television.

The official campaign period started only last February 9, but from November 2009 to February 8, 2010, four candidates for vice president -- Liberal Party’s Manuel ‘Mar’ Roxas III, Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino’s Jejomar ‘Jojo’ Binay, Nacionalista Party’s Loren Legarda, and Bagumbayan Party’s Bayani Fernando -- had already incurred a total of P561.5 million in advertising values for television, radio, and print ads.

Minus discounts of up to 47 percent granted by media agencies at the time, the net indicative spending on these candidates’ political ads amount to P294,417,894.

In the first month of the 90-day campaign period, or when campaign finance laws also started to take effect, the four showed more tempered spending, as did their running mates.

From February 9 to March 8, 2010, the combined spending on political ads of the four candidates and Bangon Pilipinas’s Perfecto Yasay Jr. amounted to only P167,814,890, according to published rate cards of media agencies.

Minus discounts allowed by the Commission on Elections (at the rate of 30, 20, and 10 percent for TV, radio, and print, respectively), the combined indicative cost of these candidates’ political ads during the 28-day period amounted to only P144,327,68.

Some candidates, however, may now be counting on dividends from their early investments in political commercials.

Noynoy, Mar most trusted in Pulse poll

by ROMMEL C. LONTAYAO (The Manila Times)
http://www.manilatimes.net/index.php/top-stories/13580-noynoy-mar-most-trusted-in-pulse-poll
 
Liberal Party standard-bearer Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino 3rd emerged as the most trusted presidential candidate, according to the latest survey conducted by Pulse Asia.

Aquino got a trust rating of 64 percent while his closest rival, Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr. of the Nacionalista Party, slid down to 59 percent, said the survey conducted by Pulse Asia from February 21 to 25.

Villar had a 70-percent trust rating a month earlier.

Aquino’s running mate, Sen. Manuel “Mar” Roxas 2nd, also had the highest trust rating among vice presidential candidates with 70 percent.

Only 14 percent of voters said that they had “small/no trust” for Aquino, with the rest saying that they were undecided.

Former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada of Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino came in third, with a 40-percent trust rating followed by administration bet Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro with 29 percent and Sen. Richrad “Dick” Gordon of Bagumbayan Movement with 25 percent.

Among the other vice presidential bets, Sen. Loren Legarda, Villar’s running mate, got a 58-percent trust rating, a 3-percent drop from her January rating. Following Legarda was Mayor Jejomar Binay of Makati City, Estrada’s running mate, who got 45 percent while former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Bayani Fernando, Gordon’s vice presidential bet, got 22 percent.

Legarda trails front-running Roxas by 9%

from Manila Standard Today

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/insideNews.htm?f=2010/march/8/news2.isx&d=2010/march/8

LIBERAL Party candidate Senator Manuel Roxas II continued to lead the vice presidential race, beating out his closest rival, Senator Loren Legarda, by 39 percent to 30 percent in the latest Manila Standard poll.

The survey, conducted between Feb. 20 and 26, asked 2,500 registered voters to cast their ballots for the positions of President, vice president and senators in a way that simulated actual voting in the coming automated elections in May.

The February results for vice president showed the same pattern as January’s, said Manila Standard resident pollster Pedro Laylo Jr.

Former Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay received 15 percent, while former Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Bayani Fernando and administration candidate Edu Manzano both had 4 percent.

Some 6 percent of the respondents were undecided.

Data by major areas somewhat reflected the same voting pattern as that of the presidential race. Roxas had big leads in Metro Manila, South Luzon and the Visayas. Roxas and Legarda were tied in North and Central Luzon.

Fernando: No regrets dismantling illegal vendors’ stalls

by Cathy C. Yamsuan (Philippine Daily Inquirer)

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100308-257424/Fernando-No-regrets-dismantling-illegal-vendors-stalls

MANILA, Philippines -- Thanks, but no thanks.

Bayani Fernando will not miss the votes of illegal vendors whose stalls he ordered demolished when he was still chair of the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

In fact, the Bagumbayan vice presidential bet said he would repeat the deed if required by the next administration.

“It’s okay if they don’t vote for me,” he said in Filipino in a live interview at a morning talk show on Monday.

“And in case I win, I would not hesitate to do it again in case it’s necessary,” he added.

“I did what I had to do; I am not scared of losing your votes. Leaders need to be strong and be able to defend their decisions. It’s like a father who should not be scared of displeasing his son for the sake of doing what’s right,” Fernando said.

Fernando insisted it was the responsibility of the MMDA to demolish illegal stalls constructed along sidewalks of public markets in Metro Manila.

Fernando to focus on farm irrigation, flood control

from The Philippine Star

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=553295&publicationSubCategoryId=65

MANILA, Philippines - Vice presidential candidate Bayani Fernando said yesterday he will focus on irrigating the country’s farmlands and implementing an effective flood control system in Central Luzon.

Talking to farmers in the towns of San Carlos, Manaoag, and Villasis in Pangasinan, Fernando assured them that should he get elected, he would introduce new irrigation and flood control systems using his expertise and experience as the former chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.”If funds have been provided for the new irrigation and teaching new methods of agri-business to the farmers, we will not have a shortage of food and we will not spend billions of money,” said Fernando.

Fernando and his running mate, Bagumbayan standard-bearer Sen. Richard Gordon, have just finished a five-day campaign tour through the provinces of Pangasinan, Pampanga and Tarlac. – Mike Frialde

Gordon bats for foreign investments in RP media

by Edson C. Tandoc Jr. (Philippine Daily Inquirer) 
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100224-255118/Gordon-bats-for-foreign-investments-in-RP-media

ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Philippines—Lamenting that his “message” for the country has been underreported in the media, presidential candidate and Senator Richard Gordon said he was in favor of allowing foreign companies to own media outfits in the country.

Pushing to amend the Constitution, Gordon said that one of the amendments he would introduce would be relaxing the ban on foreign ownership of media companies.

He told the Philippine Daily Inquirer: "I would open up media for foreign participation so we will really have a competitive media."

Told that national interests might be compromised in the daily reporting, Gordon replied: “It will still be Filipinos who will write the stories.”

Inocentes to 'BF': Place posters in designated areas

by ELLSON A. QUISMORIO (Manila Bulletin)

http://mb.com.ph/articles/243381/inocentes-bf-place-posters-designated-areas

Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Oscar Inocentes on Saturday gave this personal message to vice presidential candidate Bayani Fernando: Place your campaign posters in the correct areas.

“Being a former chairman, he (Fernando) knows that there are rules to be implemented. Candidates should be good examples for their followers to emulate,” Inocentes said.

As the official campaign period for national candidates has started, the MMDA chief reminded them not make a mess out of their campaign paraphernalia. “We will tear down all campaign posters irrespective of political parties or affiliations,” he said.

Transformer team kicks off in Cavite

by Cathy C. Yamsuan, Edson C. Tandoc Jr. (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100210-252314/Transformer-team-kicks-off-in-Cavite

MANILA, Philippines—Sen. Richard Gordon Tuesday retraced the steps of his great-grandfather at the start of his campaign for president in the May 10 election, hoping to replicate his ancestor’s heroism in the war against Spain in 1896.

Gordon and his running mate Bayani Fernando took a three-hour trip around Cavite province in a 10-wheel truck designed to look like “Optimus Prime” of movies where the vehicle is turned into a robot that becomes a “Transformer,” the term used to describe the candidates.

The 100-vehicle convoy of the Bagumbayan party included a cement mixer and ambulances of the Philippine National Red Cross to show the incarnations of Gordon as Olongapo City mayor, administrator of Subic Bay Freeport and Red Cross chief, and Fernando as Marikina City mayor and chair of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.

It set off from a gasoline station along the Southern Luzon Expressway where Gordon, who was delayed for one hour, unsheathed a replica of the sword that he said his great-grandfather Jose Tagle seized from the Spaniards.

“If we are united, we can overcome all our enemies. Today we begin the first victory of the country,” he exclaimed.

Church vows 10-million votes for Fernando

from Manila Bulletin
http://mb.com.ph/articles/241804/church-vows-10m-votes-fernando

Former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando, the vice presidential candidate of Bagumbayan Party, has received the endorsement of the Church Without Wall International (CWOW), a religious group with connection to 20,000 evangelical and Catholic churches in the country.

In a press statement, Archbishop John E. Ayudtud, the head of CWOW, said Fernando is the most qualified candidate for the position, saying there is no other man in political office like Fernando who cares genuinely for the people as evidenced by what he did to Marikina and Metro Manila.

Fernando was former mayor of Marikina City before he assumed the chairmanship of the MMDA.

Ayudtud said he believes that his strategy of “Bayani Evangelism” is an effective vehicle that would help the former MMDA chairman get elected as vice president. This can be achieved through person-to-person evangelization campaign which he called “Conversion-Duplication-Enlistment.”

“As pastors, we are trained to evangelize people, to accept Jesus Christ as personal savior. In the next three months, we will shift our evangelism work to put Fernando into office. Our battlecry in this parallel campaign is: Bayani Cares,” he added.

“I don’t have any doubt that through this strategy, with 100 pastors/workers duplicating exponentially daily up to the May 10 elections, that we will have 10 million voters in our database,” Ayudtud said.

Fernando is the running mate of Senator Richard Gordon under the Bagumbayan – Volunteers for the New Philippines Party.

Binay tops MB Online VP poll

By ERICKSON BECO (Manila Bulletin)

http://mb.com.ph/articles/241080/binay-tops-mb-online-vp-poll

Makati Mayor and Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan vice presidential bet Jejomar “Jojo” Binay leads five other vice presidential candidates in a survey recently held by the Manila Bulletin Online.

The said survey, which polled a total of 49,935 votes as of 2 p.m. of January 30, 2010, asked online visitors “Who will you vote for vice president in the May, 2010 elections?” It had Binay ahead of everybody else with 53 percent of the votes.

Binay was followed by former Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando of Bagumbayan-Volunteers for a New Philippines, 20 percent; Senator Manuel Roxas of the Liberal Party, 19 percent; former Optical Media Board (OMB) Chairman Edu Manzano of the Lakas-Kampi-CMD, 5 percent; and Sen. Loren Legarda of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, 3 percent.

Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential bet Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro Jr. emerged the top vote-getter in MB Online’s previous poll that asked “Which presidential candidate for the May 2010 elections is most capable of handling the duties as the Philippines' next leader?”

Teodoro edged out cousin and initial poll favorite Sen. Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III as he amassed 45 percent of the survey’s total votes. Aquino trailed closely with 39 percent.

Readers are asked to participate in the upcoming poll about trust in the automated election process.

'Confident' Gordon irked by question

from SUNSTAR Davao
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/confident-gordon-irked-question

A “CONFIDENT” presidential bet lashed at a reporter Tuesday when asked if he is using the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) for his election campaign.

"Shame on you. Shame on you. I consider the Philippine Red Cross sacred. My mother spent 63 years on Red Cross, ako 43 years," Gordon said.

He, however, told the reporter that "he wasn't mad" but was slightly offended.

Gordon said "his record should speak for itself."

The presidential candidate and his running mate, former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chair Bayani Fernando, paid a courtesy visit to City Council Tuesday to praise Davao for having given the biggest amount of donation for typhoon victims in Luzon last year.

Gordon, as PNRC chair, expressed gratitude to the local government for having donated P10,480,000 in cash for the benefit of victims of the typhoons and the great flooding that ensued after, affecting several cities in Luzon.

Because of Chinkee's book

from CTALK by Cito Beltran (The Philippine Star) Jan 27, 2010

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=544165&publicationSubCategoryId=64

We all have a bias, some stronger than others.

If you happen to be above 50 years old, like me, or someone with dual citizenship status (a Filipino citizen who is also a Senior citizen), chances are you will not be inclined to listen to the advice of people half your age.

If that’s not enough, you will probably have second thoughts about buying and reading a book written by a local author who we generally refer to as “wet behind the ears”.

Recently I made a decision to fight my bias towards young “whipper snappers” bold enough to write a book about financial wisdom. For someone who’s not much of a reader this was harder than cleaning the latrine.

The challenge came my way when my friend Chinkee Tan sent me a copy of his latest book: For Richer For Poorer which I quickly placed by the stairway, until I could find a place to hide it or until it fell into the “Shark Tank” by accident.

So shoot me! That’s why I started with “bias” remember? Well the book never fell in the tank. To top it all, Chinkee must have realized that he sent me an unsigned copy so he sent me a second copy again.

VP bets say they are not just ‘spare tires’

by AMITA LEGASPI, GMANews.TV July 15, 2010

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/181626/vp-bets-say-they-are-not-just-spare-tires

Believing that the post they are seeking is not just a "spare tire," vice presidential aspirants on Thursday revealed what they would do once elected.

During the press conference for GMA’s Isang Tanong: The Vice Presidential Forum, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay of the United Opposition and actor Edu Manzano of Lakas-Kampi-CMD said they would like to utilize their ‘expertise’ on local governance and law enforcement by heading the Department of Interior and Local Government.

Dominador Chipeco of Ang Kapatiran would like to be the Labor secretary, Perfecto Yasay Jr of Bangon Pilipinas wants to be in charge of trade and investment, and former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Bayani Fernando would like to supervise all the infrastructure agencies.

Senator Loren Legarda would like to lead the government program against hunger while Senator Manuel Roxas II and broadcaster Jay Sonza said they would give the president a free hand to decide what other government function should be given to them.
Binay added that his president would be able to sleep well “dahil ni isang segundo ay hindi ko iisipin na agawin ang kanyang pagkapangulo (I would not dream, even for a second, of taking the presidency from him)."

Bayani and his Dick

from BLURBAL THRUSTS by Louie Logarta (The Daily Tribune) Jan 14, 2010
http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100114com4.html

One of the hottest topics of conversation these days (aside of course from director James Cameron’s science fiction opus Avatar), especially in the various kapihan groups, discussion circles and radio-TV talk shows that abound is this interesting proposal being championed by the progressive-minded women’s partylist group called 1-Ako Babaeng Astig Aasenso (1-ABAA) seeking to attach a 10-year “expiration date” to all marriage licenses being issued by the state.

1-ABAA officials’ rationale for their radical proposal, which most assuredly is going to be opposed by the Catholic Church, is so that incompatible couples won’t have to unnecessarily spend a ton of money for expensive legal proceedings to formally end their union, albeit a practical solution to an intricate and touchy problem.

By putting a cap on the effectivity of a marriage license that a man and a woman must secure to be able to legally tie the knot in accordance with existing laws, the 1-ABAA proponents hope to do away with the red tape attendant to such messy legal separation cases and spare the protagonists the aggravation of getting snagged in costly litigation, wherein only the lawyers profit, in the event they do decide to part ways.

Like the passports being issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs that have to be renewed in five years and the drivers’ licenses from the Land Transportation Office that have a life of only a year, 1-ABAA is suggesting a mandatory expiration period for marriage licenses whereupon the union will be rendered null and void, unless the parties involved opt for renewal.

According to 1-ABAA, by putting an expiration date on the licenses, this would give warring or unfulfilled couples the opportunity to simply walk away from their commitment to one another without having to undergo the nullification process that is so taxing, tiring and time-consuming, aside from being obliged to relive all their sad experiences for the judge to hear so he can determine if they are truly deserving of being granted legal separation.

But just like the divorce and reproductive health bills, both pro-poor measures that are currently in limbo in the legislature, the marriage bill of 1-ABAA will most probably be consigned to the backburner at least until the election period blows over as congressmen are fearful of incurring the ire of the Catholic Church and the negative political backlash that the priests and bishops are threatening to unleash on the unbelievers.

Probably the most innocuous pairing seeking the two highest elective positions in government in the fast-approaching 2010 elections is that of Sen. Dick Gordon and former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Bayani Fernando, both independent candidates who found themselves clinging to each other for dear life after they were bypassed as presidential standard bearers by their respective political parties, forcing them into forming the ragtag Bagumbayan party that, if the surveys are to be believed, is doing quite poorly among the electorate.

Gordon and Fernando, to say the least, are strange bedfellows having come from opposite sides of the political spectrum. The former, a leading light of the once-mighty Marcos-era Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) party, was hoping to become the presidential standard bearer of the Nacionalista Party but was bypassed in favor of Sen. Manny Villar whom they believed could run a more potent campaign with the billions he is believed to have at his disposal; while the latter was an out-and-out administration stalwart for so many years until he dared dream of becoming the administration’s presidential bet. He was utterly disappointed upon being rejected by Malacañang, despite being a loyal follower of Arroyo ever since she assumed power, in favor of their chosen champion former Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro.

Fernando, who had long entertained presidential ambitions, said it was he who had initiated moves in seeking out Gordon to convince him to run as HIS vice president, but in the end it was he who was prevailed upon by Gordon to slide down to the No. 2 spot.

The way it was explained, Fernando said he agreed to become Gordon’s running mate in Bagumbayan as the acknowledged Subic savior had a lot more political experience than he did. Both were highly-successful former small-town mayors (Gordon in Olongapo and Fernando in Marikina) who didn’t squander the mandate given to them by their respective constituents.

A friend of ours, newsman Ali Macabalang who is a provincial correspondent of the Manila Bulletin, was designated recently as the new public information officer of the ARMM. As such, he is responsible for looking after pesky reporters seeking to interview his boss, Gov. Ansarrudin Alonto Adiong, who was named as replacement for the disgraced Zaldy Uy Ampatuan in the aftermath of the Maguindanao massacre, as well as attending to all the publicity requirements of the local government unit.

Macabalang was the “sparring partner” of the late Bong Reblando, another Bulletin correspondent covering the Mindanao beat operating out of General Santos City, who was among 30 journalists to lose their lives at the hands of murderous gunmen allegedly led by Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. of Datu Unsay, Maguindanao last November 2009.

Macabalang can be considered, technically, a Maguindanao massacre “survivor” because normally he should have been with Reblando in the ill-starred Mangudadatu convoy that was intercepted by the thugs in Ampatuan town during that fateful Nov. 23 as they were known to be inseparable during press coverages. But, as the gods would have it, he wasn’t able to join up with his buddy Reblando, and because of this he escaped with his life.