Here's What the Opposition Should Do

After Roco announced yesterday that he was leaving his campaign behind to go to the US for medical treatment, marami sa mga supporters niya ay na-disappoint at parang nawalan na ng pagasa sa kampanya niya. These people are now looking for somebody else to support and their votes are now up for grabs.

Since wala na si Roco, it is very important na mag-unite na ang opposition habang may oras pa.

I believe that either Ping or FPJ can beat GMA as long as iisa lang ang tatakbo sa kanila for president. But I also believe Ping has a better chance of beating GMA one-on-one than FPJ because Lacson has a much better crossover appeal than FPJ.

Ganito kasi yan. If FPJ steps down to become VP and endorses Ping, lahat ng mga supporters ni FPJ ay mapupunta kay Ping. Or, if Ping steps down and endorses FPJ, lahat rin ng supporters ni Ping ay mapupunta kay FPJ. I know that how Erap and Jinggoy feels... sabi nila if FPJ is out, we'll support Ping.

Now bakit si Ping ang mas gusto kung maging standard bearer ng Opposition instead of FPJ?

The answer is simple. Ping can attract the Roco middle class voters and a significant portion of the anti-GMA crowd (ABG, Anybody But Gloria), and FPJ cannot. Ang masama pa niyan, meron ring malakas na "Anybody but FPJ" movement si FPJ, kaya mahihirapan siyang maka-attract ng voters outside his base.

(Halatang divisive sila GMA and FPJ, ano?)

There's a reason why a lot smart people and media types wanted John Edwards to win the Democratic nomination over John Kerry even though Edwards was trailing Kerry badly in the primaries... and that is because John Edwards v. George Bush is a better matchup for the Dems than Kerry v. Bush.

And they know that whoever wins the nomination will get full backing of all the loyal, anti-Bush democrats behind him anyway. It doesn't matter whether it's Kerry or Edwards... they will get the same level of support from the Dems.

The problem with Kerry kasi is that he's way to liberal for most independent and Republican Moderates. Sure Kerry won the Dem primaries easily, but puro anti-war at anti-bush liberals ang mga nagpa-participate sa mga primaries na ito eh, and Kerry has the edge because he is more liberal and more anti-Bush than the moderate Edwards.

Now that he has captured the Dem nomination, can Kerry do a good job of attracting the moderates and independents to win the national election? I doubt it. Kerry's just too liberal and too boring to be an attractive candidate for moderate independents.

Kung si John Edwards lang ang napili ng mga Dems, mas magiging kabado si bush, because not only is Sen. Edwards a Southern Democrat (moderate), he's also a very articulate and very impressive stump speaker.

Since hati ang US 50-50 between pro-war and anti-war, pro-bush and anti-bush, any independent and moderate voters you can pry away from the middle or from the other party can make a crucial difference.

Hindi ba ang rule sa US politics ay ganito: During the primaries, you try to satisfy your party base by moving to the left (or to the right). Once you get the nomination, you try to move to the Center to attract independents and moderates from other parties.

Sa bansa natin, same situation rin. Hati ang bansa between Edsa dos and Edsa Tres. FPJ is John Kerry. Ping Lacson is John Edwards.

FPJ claims he can unite the country, but do you really think Civil Society and Edsa Dos types will welcome an FPJ presidency? Sa mga nakikita at naririnig ko, the answer is a BIG NO.

Same with GMA rin. I don't think she can heal this divided country. Para siyang si Bush, and you know MARAMING GALIT kay Bush sa US. LOL!

Si Ping lang talaga ang nakikita ko na mga experience, integrity at crossover appeal na makaka-attract ng mga middle class educated voters at poor erap masa supporters para ma-unite ang bansa natin na tatlong taon nang hati between Edsa Dos at Edsa Tres.

Now, how should Ping Lacson move to unite the opposition. Here are a few tips:

1) Forgive Angara - Yes, I know gago si angara, but uniting the opposition is more important than asking KNP to get rid of him. If that's the only reason kung bakit hindi matuloy ang pag-unite sa opposition, then please drop the demand to kick Angara out na, Sen. Lacson.

Basta ba ikaw na ang mapiling standard bearer ng opposition eh... that's already a big reward in itself. At kung ikaw ang mapili, Angara should not expect to have an influential position in a Ping-Poe administration.

2) Visit Erap - try to convince him to switch to your side. It's not as hard as you think. Hindi ba medyo inis na rin si Erap kay Angara and company dahil pakiramdam niyang hindi siya nirerespeto nito and that he doesn't feel "wanted" or "useful" anymore by FPJ's camp. Well, show erap that he is important to your campaign and that he opinions and counsel are still valuable to you.