Reality and fiction

‘Twas a comedy, drama, romance and suspense thriller rolled in one. And I’d like to think all of these were part of the recent May 10 polls, but not exactly. But some twists are parallel to our first computerized elections, which are now being thrown in a mayhem by, I believe, several fronts which want to discredit the success of the polls, if they were indeed successful; or may break further our trust in the Commission on Elections, which has yet to recover from the ugly taint of the fraudulent Virgilio Garcillano of 2004.
I love Robin Williams, his films being among the very few that I care to watch, this rubbernecker being a sucker for good comedy.
When I first saw Man of the Year, Williams’ 2006 movie about the possible imperfections of computerized elections, which we tried and are now debating its success—or failure, however we look at it, I grabbed a copy of it with nary a care from a street stall of pirated DVDs in Quiapo, ignoring the whispers of a heavily perspiring vagrant, who pestered me with “Manong, triple X!”
I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life when I curtly replied: “Hindi ako nanonood nyan, pari ako! (I don’t watch triple x films, I am a priest!).” To which he retorted: “Yung pari sa amin, apat asawa! (The priest in my town has four wives!).”
I made a hasty exit, not wanting to become a recipient of some rapid fires of bullets coming from the hobo and his associates’ hands.
Dissecting the movie was as quick as my flight. It dealt with a television comedian (we’re back to Robin Williams. And no, we’re not talking about Manny Pacquiao!) who made a daring joke about running for the US presidency and was egged on by numerous fans that his joke became real.
For a quicker overview, Williams’ character Tom Dobbs won the polls, surprising even himself. Until a woman named Eleanor Green came out to claim there had been a major glitch in the computer system, which its manufacturers did not want out to protect their fortune, thus leading to Green being hunted to be killed. And then the movie turned interestingly serious.
The malfunction centered on the possibility of a big anomaly in the computers. In the movie’s plot, Dobbs tallied more numbers than his actual votes when the computers counting the ballots diverted counts to his name, which bore double Bs, as against the incumbent President Kellogg (Double Ls, and Gs); and another candidate, a fictional Senator Mills (Double Ls). The B, being the second letter in the alphabet, intercepted the votes for the double Gs and Ls.
Although the movie was of creative imagination, it bore similarities with our recent polls.
The results of the elections, even with Sen. Noynoy Aquino receiving an overwhelming number of votes, are under question. They are also being muddled further by interest groups, some with legitimate concerns and causes for their protest, that put the Comelec in a bad light, weeks after receiving accolades for the quick counting of votes, which was initially thought as a gauge for the computerized polls’ success, only to wake us up on what appear now as possibilities of malfunctioning PCOS machines (at the least); and at worst fraud, that may lead to another failure to have clean and honest polls.
This new saga in the Philippine electoral system is equally interesting to watch. It seems complete and with various scripts that were recently adorned with foul words Al Pacino blushed at in his murderous Godfather movies.
And there was “Koala Boy” who calls himself Robin (not Williams, I suppose), the self-proclaimed whistle-blower whom many pray should not be Ador Mawanay. He does not look as convincing as the Eleanor Green character in the Robin Williams movie, but we have to wait for the final turnout of this new, very interesting script.
And who’s behind him? Could he be the losing presidential contender the Comelec wants us to suspect? Or is he part of another Malacanang ploy to serve its own end, as Cong. Teddyboy Locsin vowed to reveal soon?
A comedic blunder would soon unfold before us. And we’ll just accept this as another bump in our lives, which we cannot seem to perfect.
Life, like the movies, are alike.
It draws inspiration from each other, even in the high-tech world of computers, and fiction, and plots to destroy the world, or an election.
But this one is no laughing matter.

Of murders and chances

If Sen. Ping Lacson can no longer “sleep soundly,” as his former aide Cesar Mancao wanted to assure him when he revealed then Presidential Security Group chief Romeo Prestoza’s offer of freedom and support to his children if he would pin Lacson on the killings of publicist Bubby Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito, it is probably not because Mancao eventually turned his back against him but because of his losing flint to his political star that now begins to show a dying flicker.

The revived double murder case is now beginning to gain headway even if Lacson is no longer in the people’s political radar after hedging on the presidency, which he realized was again elusive. And it is possible Lacson would become the sole political figure to get into the cross of the Department of Justice (DoJ)’s sight but Erap Estrada as well.

The problem for GMA, for now however, is that Erap remains determined in regaining the presidency he lost in 2001. Any move to pin down Erap might awaken a sleeping giant among the large mass that supports the deposed leader. So, it is better to train one’s sight at Lacson first and deal with Erap later, when the conditions are ripe.

It also did not help Lacson that he burned his bridges with Estrada, although some sectors believe that decision would come in handy if and when GMA moves firmly to stop Erap from becoming president anew at all cost.

But not for now, as GMA continues to weigh things with just a little over five months before a change in country’s leadership takes place (if ever!), but it is yet unclear whether her candidate Gibo Teodoro, or her perceived alternate candidate, Manny Villar, would pull through against Noynoy Aquino, who remains on top of surveys but whose lead nevertheless remains precarious given the possibility of another massive cheating if media play and/or future messages and advertorials would not work in favor of his rivals in the crucial months.

Erap will remain off the hook, as he immediately claimed after the DoJ’s announcement of Lacson being the prime suspect in the case. But while Erap isn’t tagged along with Lacson, and as new surveys do not seem to point to him as the leading candidate, Lacson and the Dacer-Corbito case would remain hovering above his head like festering flies.

The Lacson drama, however, surprisingly unfolded as focus on the Maguindanao mass murder of 57 persons, including 30 media colleagues, had started to wane. Politics being an art, its masters have just changed the course of public interest from some gruesome murders back to a couple of gruesome murders.

And it may get the necks of two scathing figures, while the rest of the field would prove little concern.

Besides, Noynoy is now facing a revival of issues related to the “Kamag-anak Inc.,” expanding the issue to sports where his uncle, Peping Cojuangco, one of the more famous among his relatives, is holding sway.

And while Villar may think he is off the hook already in the C5 double budget insertion mess, his handlers remain prepared for any more negative publicities that would come their bet’s way.

It is Erap, through Lacson and the Dacer-Corbito double murder case, who would possibly face the most damaging issues besides the disqualification case recently hurled against him before the Comelec.

And the rest are expendable.

With May 10 just around the corner, nobody among the leading contenders can afford a sound sleep.

Even if it’s another person facing charges of killing people.