Strategy para sa House Opposition Candidates (part 2)

I believe pagdating sa local races, Arroyo is a divisive figure that the opposition can harness to unite those voters who don't like her. But using her as an issue is not enough. Here are some other issues that I strongly believe will resonate in the local elections everywhere.

1) JOBS, JOBS, JOBS.
2) Abolish Pork Barrel Politics
3) Zero-tolerance for cheating and corruption.

Mong Palatino says the opposition should be focusing on hunger as the main issue in 2007. MLQ3 Agrees.

I know the surveys indicate that hunger is a problem in our country, and it should be an issue.

But my instincts tell me that the issue that will resonate most with voters the most is Jobs.

I believe this is what the House opposition challengers need to emphasize on. Keep hammering on over and over... JOBS JOBS JOBS.

Here's the narrative:

Bakit maraming nag-aalisan sa bansa natin? Because wala nang mahanap na trabaho ang karamihan sa mga kababayan natin.

What we need to do is provide, create and attract more decent paying and stable job opportunities in our country para hindi na mapilitan pa ang mga teachers na magtrabaho sa HK bilang maids, o ang mga doctors natin na mag-abroad para lang maging nurse sa isang US hospital.

We need to do a better job of attracting investors. We need to lower the cost of living in the country to benefit the poor and the middle class. And we also need to lower the cost of doing business here to help small businesses expand and hire more employees.

Most of the jobs available nowadays are Call Center jobs, unfortunately though, most filipinos (especially the poor) are not qualified for it because they lack fluency in English. Kaya karamihan puro sa mga exclusive schools like Ateneo or La Salle ang naha-hire sa Call Center.

Now if most Filipinos have a difficult time getting hired to an entry-level job like a call center operator (albeit it is high paying job in our country), what other promising jobs options or business opportunities do they have now INSIDE our country, aside from selling pirated dvds in quiapo or being a cellphone card dealer?

Arroyo tried to fool the public before the 2004 elections by promising a zero unemployment rate in our country. It was her Economic Planning secretary Romulo Neri's idea to use deceptive statistics to window dress the unemployment numbers and poverty level numbers.

The second issue that the Opposition needs to make an issue of is the issue of Pork Barrel, a major source of corruption in our country. Pork Barrel politics is what helped arroyo survive and buy off many of her allies loyalty in Congress.

And in turn, Arroyo's allies--many of whom will be running for re-election in 2007, have a TREMENDOUS advantage in pork funding over their challengers and opposition incumbents-- and will use that money (along with other PHILHEALTH type, bolantic schemes) during election time to defeat their poorly funded challengers and retain their seats. It's a nasty cycle, I tell you.

Abolishing pork barrel politics ties in with the opposition goal of changing the culture of corruption and the way we do business in Congress and instituting reforms.

Sa US, Pork Barrel spending is a popular bipartisan reform issue. Read this too.

Para sa akin, i’d want to see Congress' pork barrel scrapped altogether, so we could save that money for more important things like education, hiring more school teachers, etc.. If we have to spend money, we will do it in a wiser, more efficient manner.

Meron pang isang isyung binanggit si Neal Cruz:

At present, the House often usurps the jobs of executive departments, particularly Public Works and Highways, Health, Education, Agriculture -- in fact, every department and agency where there is money to be made.

Why should a congressman, for example, tell the Department of Public Works and Highways what roads and bridges to construct, and to even dictate which private contractor should get the contract? The job of congressmen is to enact laws, but each one of them acts as de facto secretary of public works, health, agriculture, etc. Congressmen actually overrule the department secretaries when it comes to projects in their respective localities.

The reason, of course, is the kickbacks from contractors. The contractors kick back to the congressmen as much as half of the budget for a project. The cost of any project, therefore, doubles, while the congressman runs laughing all the way to the bank.

Congressmen say it is they who know first-hand the needs of their districts so they should be the ones to identify what projects to build. But isn’t that the job of local government officials? A congressman who spends most of his time in Manila cannot know more about the needs of his constituents than a local official who lives and works with them in the province. Besides, there are the development councils of which the congressmen are members and therefore can propose projects for their districts.

I agree with Neal. House and Senate Pork Barrel spending is very inefficient and prone to corruption. Yung mga tongressman ang pipili kung anong road or fertilizer projects ang popondohan? Are they effing kidding me? I think it makes more sense to give the money instead to the perennially underfunded local government units, sa mga mayors at sa mga governors– the people who actually run and maintain their cities and provinces– instead of the tongressman who spends most of his time in Manila.

Everybody needs to sacrifice, and this is the best way to show that we business when it comes to saving people's taxmoney, and spending wisely.

Here's what the opposition challenger should promise to the Filipino people if elected:

1) If elected, each House opposition challenger will not receive pork during their three year term in office.

2) If Opposition gains the majority of seats in the House, will make abolition of Pork Barrel permanent for the entire House. Regalo ng Opposition yan sa mamamayang Pilipino.

I strongly believe this can be a great issue for the opposition because they will have the moral high ground when it comes to fiscal responsibility, transparency and efficient and wise spending. And more importantly, Voters will see this as a great sacrifice on their part, giving up pork and all that money para mabawasana ng corruption at politically-motivated spending (lalo na sa election).

Besides, gagamitin ng administration tongressman ang pork barrel as a lethal weapon against the opposition/challengers to buy off voter support. If you don't make pork barrel politics a "corruption/transparency" issue against the administration, malamang matatalo ang opposition challenger because they will be outspent 100 to 1 by the administration candidates. Political jujitsu my friends, turn their "strengths" into an issue against them. Don't let arroyo get away buying her allies support to kill the impeachment via pork barrel. And don't let these judases get away with using the pork barrel to buy their way to victory.

The opposition challengers has nothing to lose, and everything to gain by making pork barrel reforms an issue. From the very beginning, the challengers are at a disadvatage because they lack funding, and the admin candidates have all the advatage to remain in power because of the quid pro quo (Pork Barrel for kill impeach votes) between Arroyo and these tongressmen.

MORE TOMORROW...