Who will lead the Philippines, Vice Ganda or Mar Roxas?
Analysis and Opinion
By Joe America
Philippine politics is modeled after ABS-CBN television dramas, not the other way around. It could be tragedy or comedy or just plain amazing, depending on the week. The characters are larger than life, and always have been. Cory Aquino draws a standing ovation in the US Congress. Rodrigo Duterte sits in an international jail. A Philippine warship blasts past Scarborough Shoal and two Chinese ships collide in pursuit. The alleged dastardly crook Bongbong Marcos runs a good government. The streets burst into political flowers, alternately yellow or pink or red. Forty two cock-fighters disappear. Flamboyant Vice Ganda emerges as a political player. The Supreme Court unanimously decides impunity is more important than honesty.
The poor continue to live day to day, miserable and struggling. They are used by political players, not given a future.
I tell you, it is endlessly endless, episode after episode, a game of thorns.
How does Mar Roxas enter the headline, you ask? And I say let’s start writing our own drama and cast him as The Oil Man.
” Huh? The Oil Man? Have you crawled back into the bottle like your bookie Sal? Make some sense!”
No, no, no. Sorry! Let me explain. Here are some quick facts. AI can’t find them.
- The pro-democracy, pro competence crowd has no organization, just different sects piping up here and there.
- The good guys also have no money to organize like DDS. DDS likely has corrupt and Chinese funding.
- Mar Roxas’ kids are growing older and I imagine are in school much of the day.
- He is trusted in the business community, he is a logical, smart man, and can pull the loose ends of a pro-democracy movement together.
- The business community can be convinced to fund a Mar Roxas led movement, but not a Risa Hontiveros led movement.
- The business community will get richer under democracy than an authoritarian state close to China.
The Oil Man is the key to organizing and funding a major pro-democracy movement.
But in my drama-induced imagination, he would not do it alone. There would be an Executive Board with major power players on it. Leni Robredo, Risa Hontiveros, Bongbong Marcos, Joy Belmonte, Manny “Mindanao” Pacquiao, and Mar Roxas. Or choose your own cast, I have no claim on creative perfection.
Underneath the unpaid board would be a paid Operations Manager with paid subordinate positions that would look something like:
- Messaging/Marketing Operations
- Social Media Pyramid Operations
- Technology Operations
- Funding/Accounting Operations
- Mayors Council
- Event Scheduling Manager
Do you see the picture? Not today’s haphazard rabble of good intent, largely ineffective.
But a machine.
Well-oiled.
__________________________
Cover photograph from Manila Bulletin article “Marcos meets old pal Mar Roxas in Capiz“.
The Society of Honor by Joe America 
Where are we going Philippines?
Ha, yes, that is the question. It’s always been the question. No one seems to have the answer. That’s a bit of a problem.
we have changed direction, we longer looked to the east toward china, now we looked to the west, towards our main ally estados unidos. and if we are to be like mel gibson in the movie braveheart, we have upped our ahem, I cannot mention it, and then exposed our hairy backsides toward china. such a sight we made! chinese war ship hit chinese coastguard.
Still going forward despite the rest of the world on a downward trajectory. At least many of us admire the skillfulness of the Coast Guard helmsman dodging expensive tin cans bigger than ours.
Doomerism is dangerous to one’s mental health.
Totally agree. I read this morning on FB of an old timer completely giving up because of the political situation and corrupt, incompetent legislators. Focus on the good and the promise and it does not have to get to that.
that’s exactly what kurakots want, people being indifferent and giving up on them, so they can go on their merry ways, unchecked and unopposed, and free to plunder and bleed the national coffer very very dry.
old timer being old codger and not been listening to what president marcos said, to pick up pen and paper and dob in or write to malakanyang about unmitigated greed of politicians, public projects that have been dragging on for years with no finishing date in the offing, etc. so many things to do and yet old timer choose do nothing! his loss.
How I wish we could replace those corrupt people in the government but some of us never learn. It is always a repetitious cycle through the years. How pathetic the Filipinos have become Joem.
Well, NInotchka Rosca posted on Facebook some months ago about how the board of a homeowner’s association close to where she lives in Metro Manila now simply used the funds to go to Baguio (allegedly) instead of buying an additional needed water tank. In families where OFWs or migrants send money home for instance to buy school books for the kids (allegedly) it can happen that the money is just spent in the next mall. At the lowest level of government, there are stories of Sangguniang Kabataan officers (barangay level) using the funds to buy official cars they don’t really need. The old joke in the 1970s was “for official use also” so everyone was in on the stuff. So it all starts at the most basic level.
really, irineo! how silly of sk officials to be buying suv when parking is problematic. with the floods we have, sk officials are better off buying jet skis for official use only.
They are a youth barangay organization. They are still young and hopefully physically fit, they can buy bicycles. As Ariel Ureta allegedly joked during the 1970s, sa ikauunlad ng bayan, bisikleta ang kailangan.
They could likewise have official bancas for flood times, with which they could even help citizens in need. My point is that too many Filipinos have a Pirates of the Carribean mindset “take what you can, give nothing back”. That is funny when Jack Sparrow says it in the movies but not funny in real life.
banca? that’s funny. we can turn banca upside down and walk on sea bed like jack sparrow. we have yet to try the feat on flood water though.
Bam Aquino already has congratulated Vice Ganda so it is too late: https://x.com/inquirerdotnet/status/1956937288056807526
A possible solution, make Vice Ganda constitutional monarch of the Philippines. Title: Majesty, gender-neutral, just Majesty Vice Ganda, not his or her majesty. Make Mar Roxas the Prime Minister.
Majesty Vice Ganda’s chief of protocol should be Teddy Boy Locsin, dressed in 18th century manner with a powdered wig, stockings and high heels. The British ritual of someone in a powdered wig knocking at the door of Parliament to ask for the King or Queen to enter for their equivalent of SONA should be adopted with Locsin in that role. Mar Roxas could then report to Majesty Vice Ganda and therefore the people that Vice Ganda embodies yearly, with every facial expression of Majesty Vice Ganda dissected in social media for pleasure or displeasure.
Ah, wonderful. So in fact maybe Vice Ganda would be better than Roxas at fund-raising, so I have no trouble supporting your preferred candidate, bottom line.
such long legs! vice did leap over the birthday cake issue and now on to jet ski. all in one stride. at one stage, I thought, vice would be challenged by duterte clan, the way general torre was challenged by baste duterte. ah, the dutertes must have learned by now not to pick battles with bigger names.
oh, yes, vice really could lead, had the longevity and nous for it too.
methink mar roxas is happy where he is, being dad with his twins, little p and little p (pepe and pilar) and taking long walks. now that mar is getting fitter than a fiddle, his legs may not be longer than vice’s, may we tempt mar with the almighty scepter? hope korina is good sport and in for the ride, big p (son paolo) as well.
That photo laughing with President Marcos suggests to me that he can not only bring the business community to a coalition, he can bring Marcos in. Roxas does not have to BE a candidate, he only needs save democracy.
if the mountain wont come to mohamed, then mohamed will come to the mountain, is what I am seeing in the pic above. president marcos meet with mar roxas but the meeting was arranged. I recall having read something along the line of roxas and marcos having common ground as both had attended the same wharton university and studied economics, but only roxas graduated, marcos dropped out. roxas will always be a reminder of what marcos failed to achieve. though in 2022 after marcos became president, he was awarded honorary economics degree at harvard. and that leveled the playing field for both roxas and marcos.
so maybe now, marcos has no more need to cover his mouth when speaking to roxas, the adage what happened in wharton stays in wharton has been upended. harvard has superseded what happened in wharton.
so, maybe both roxas and marcos can now work together and put our democratic house in order.
The photo says “friendship” to me.
marcos has the more expensive watch! roxas’ posture is more relaxed, the top button of his shirt is open. his smile is unconditional, his zygomaticus is fully engaged, teeth showing. the worry line on his forehead is not engaged. the man is comfortable with his surrounding. nothing to hide.
on the other hand, marcos is all buttoned up, his dominant right hand crossed at the torso and upward toward his bracialis. defensive. maybe as a barrier or brake to remind him not to get too close. his left hand cupped his mouth, fingers not curved toward himself, thank god! he is not playing inferior. he is president after all. though the worry line on his forehead seemed pronounced. maybe he felt he is not yet truly among friends.
Maybe. Or he is working hard and is the person they are applauding. Who are his friends, really? It’s a lonely job. Sec. Bersamin and his wife.
His wife who is Mar Roxas’ second cousin is probably a key factor in the relationship to Mar Roxas.
Imee’s lament that her brother is now more of an Araneta than a Marcos might be a hint of some things.
I hope so. Certainly President Marcos needs to leave office as something other than a schemer or crook.
president marcos probly wont leave office as the delulu without the solulu. he is fighting not only flood control but also greed control. need to control the greed of connivers in the flood control projects. acting like alice guo, some connivers have endeared themselves to the public pretending to be utterly generous, giving land for public use, land that in all probability was bought with money siphoned off from flood control projects. have churches similarly build too. and now people are defending the connivers.
for thousands spent on charity, connivers secretly kept millions more to themselves. flood is the lest of their worries.
I so hope president marcos wont leave office without a single conniver called to account, and jailed for economic espionage.
Lozada who finally got released from prison, I never followed that he was in trouble with the law or was just setup ala Delima.
He was the icon of good governance with his moderate the greed quoting of a NEDA head? Or who was it who said that.
Moderate the greed.
After that we no longer have the drink moderately it turned into. Drink responsibly, smoke responsively, game responsively.
We are back to Uncle of Peter Parker.
With power comes responsibility.
latest on mar roxas’ wife korina. if korina gets dragged into the flood control fiasco, I hope mar will not get dragged as well.
https://politiko.com.ph/2025/08/22/no-such-thing-as-p10m-korina-sanchezs-team-responds-after-vico-sotto-slams-interview-with-discayas/daily-feed/
I think Vico loses on this one, for me. He ought not lecture interview shows after declining to be interviewed himself.
For now Korina is defacto referee of pam baranggay disputes on TV.
An interview with a journalism professor.
Paraphrased:
“ONCE a journalist always a journalist”
” journalist can bot be endorsers”
I might change my mind on this, giving Vico the edge. It’s uncomfortable from any angle.
I just hapoen to not buy the justifications of both Babao and Sanchez Roxas.
Babao said that it was a lifestyle section interview and Korina claimed all the proceeds went to the network.
My bias was for them by impulse but not when I heard and learned more.
Yes, but it is possible Korina was blind to what the network was doing until too late. Should she have walked out on her own show when she found out the arrangement? Tough situation.
Yes Joe, there are many things to consider to form an informed opinion.
Sadly fantasy team-ups are just that, fantasy, not unlike the online fantasy sports that Filipinos love to e-bet on.
What is needed is a strong political party or a stable coalition of political parties with a platform all leaders involved can agree on. Then campaign only focused on that platform, not personal ambitions. Ambition means nothing when there’s no secured win that grants power.
The opposite of the proverb “divide et impera” which describes good-intentioned Filipino leaders jockeying for top positions and usually failing alone, is “eritis insuperabiles, si fueritis inseparables.”
Totally agree. The strongest political party is DDS. After that, nothing. Pinks have dissolved. Yellows are gone. Who will form it, frame it, fund it. Not Abgat Buhay which is a social services organiation. Not grass roots, by 2028.
The fantasy is in seeing the solution but not how to get there.
You bemoan the lack of action. I put mine on the table. What’s the reality? Who is going to organize and run against DDS? Names.
Personally? Bam Aquino and Kiko Pangilinan.
Heydarian seems to think Bong Go has a chance, but I do not like his association with DDS.
Whoever should or will organize to run against the DDS coalition is up to Filipinos, not me. I am not a Filipino, nor do I have any connections to the Philippines other than as a friend. And from my experience of being a friend to many, I have realized that though I might occasion advice out of care, even close friends may not heed. While morality and ethics may slightly differ between cultures around the edges, there is a universality to the fundamentals of what is right and just. No matter how much I can fight for a friend, in the end if they are not willing to fight for themselves, then it is I who ended up bruised and battered, effort wasted.
I had just finished taking part in a protest in LA, after a long work day, among thousands of citizens. There have been large daily protests in major American cities for over 2 weeks yet it is not being reported in the media. Near complete corporate media blackout aside from Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O’Donnell both of who have been regulated to after prime time slots. I find myself with limited energy nowadays, and much of it is dedicated to changing what I can change. A lot of that energy is going to be directed closer to home.
Bam Aquino is heating up, for sure. Kiko Pangilinan maybe a little. The argument that you are not in the Philippines seems not to restrain your criticism of the Philippines, why should it restrain recommending corrective action? It seems an easy path. Getting to the “action” you say is needed is not so easy. How can Bam Aquino win? He was the campaign manager for Leni Robredo and did not show well. Just town after town, weak social media structure to counter DDS. I don’t know funding or advertising. I personally don’t think small forums was enough for a short campaign handicapped by Robredo’s late decision to run.
So how does Aquino get elected? Or Pangilinan?
In my framework which you brush as fantasy is that the Executive Committee would agree that, given a reluctance of Robredo to run, “Bam’s our man!” and they throw the whole weight of the organization and funding behind him.
I do not believe in empty criticism, and much of what I have written about is interspersed with ideas of what should be done better, informed by my time within a party apparatus, professional and personal lived experience that has taken me to more interesting places than the average person. As such if what I say is viewed as criticism, then that criticism is constructive in nature. For me to still be engaged with the Philippines topic means I still care deeply enough about the Philippines to engage.
The Philippines is not some special, magical land where basic logic doesn’t apply. Unless one is inventing a new theory of physics to supersede classic or quantum physics, nearly everything has already been done, elsewhere. Despite what some in the Philippines may think about having completely different, special rules only for the Philippines, water still runs downhill and politics still has a lot to do with either emotional pull or pocketbook issues (often both).
Here’s what Filipino liberals and progressives are doing wrong. They focus too much on star power and vibes. Did it occur to anyone that to get power the power needs to be cultivated? Dynasties and DDS did not get powerful just on vibes alone. The forces of bad in Philippines politics spent years, decades since 1986 to build power locally. They built organizations and coalitions to reinforce their local power by capturing national power. While the forces of good were happy to go on star power and vibes. Yes, most likely DDS had help around the edges from Russia in 2015-2016 and PRC since 2016, but should foreign interference alone be blamed? No, Filipino liberals and progressives should blame their own addiction to star power and vibes in lieu of gathering power and organizing which gets the same damn results every 3, 6 years. All the while when I walk the same streets as a DE, eat at the same roadside vendors as a DE, visit the same churches, public buildings or schools as a DE, the propaganda of the local dynasty is ever present hung on banners and carved into the backs of student’s desk chairs. Yet hardly “good governance” politicians around at all, because they are stuck on gathering cultural cred that is irrelevant to most DE’s lives.
Why is it that so many DE’s supported Duterte? It is a common misunderstanding that BC’s were the reason why Duterte won. But the middle class are a tiny fraction of the population. Popular support by DE’s is the reason why Duterte won, and is why his moronically mediocre children are still political forces. DE’s bought into Duterte because they thought that by a “war on drugs” (and “crime”), their life could become a little bit better, somehow. Now if I were to be hired as a consultant to whatever campaign, I would advise that the only platform that should be pushed is “we will give you better jobs and a better life.” That’s it. I wouldn’t even ask for a consultant’s fee, because that advice is just common sense.
That’s an excellent platform. I would push it through a barangay network, a social media network (pyramid/groups) of paid influencers, and well-funded advertising. And I’d start now, which is behind when DDS started for Sara Duterte.
The influencers are extremely important nowadays. One thing my foray into Filipino show business of today has revealed to me is how many they are and how much they are on the same wavelength as a lot of Filipinos. They are the online barangays of the online national village.
As for the barangays, of course Leni Robredo’s campaign started door to door way too late. There has to be a modified version of that but with LOCAL people who find out what the concerns of people are, in their respective local languages and all. That Leni Robredo’s volunteers did outreach campaigning was noble but they were often seen with suspicion in DE places, not really surprising.
Yes, exactly right.
“The Philippines is not some special, magical land where basic logic doesn’t apply.” Are you sure? Sometimes it feels like another dimension.
“the propaganda of the local dynasty” yes, I saw that in a Brillante Mendoza film from the noughties that happened to play in UP Balara. Posters of the exact same family that were barangay captains when I still ventured there in the 1970s and 1980s.
The politicians of the Third Republic still knew how to connect with local forces. Those of the Commonwealth and American period even more. Seems the liberal politicians of the Fifth Republic became like Pardo de Tavera back in the early 1900s (VERY distanced from the people) and less than Quezon – or even Manuel Roxas in 1946.
Sometimes I wonder if the Philippines served as inspiration for Norman Vincent Peale’s “Power of Positive Thinking,” or perhaps it was the other way around as Peale was popular in the post-war period, especially with then-young Baby Boomers on both sides of the Pacific. I’m being facetious of course, as positive thinking is a sham where a believer does not become accountable to his own actions while placing responsibility wholly on an impersonal, servant God who grants wishes like a genie. Some diluted form of Peale’s books are still popular in the Philippines, judging by the things Filipinos tend to repeat. As one of Peale’s critics remarked on the false belief of upbeat self-assurance despite the absence of actual evidence or even contrary evidence, “Learned optimism, in contrast, is about accuracy.” There is a difference between trying to wish nothing into existence and a learned optimism rooted in reality backed by personal action.
The lost connection between liberal politicians and the people hits the nail on its head. The disconnect is even worse for progressive politicians. Filipino elites built mini-Americas for themselves dotting the landscape of the archipelago, so it’s not surprising the more liberal minded among the elites also imported ideas from American liberalism. Perhaps those of the Commonwealth and Third Republic still added a unique Filipino flavor, American ketchup versus banana ketchup, but the Fifth Republic liberals were very much influenced by the Third Way and technocratic neoliberal economics. Well Third Way failed in the US, UK, Germany and is clinging on for dear life in Canada only being saved for now by the threat of Trump across the border. Neoliberal economics largely failed as well, and could’ve never worked in the Philippines where it is currently impossible to have a technocrat heavy government in a dynasty-driven cronyism-adjacent system.
To me the outlines of the answers are simple. In my near 3 decade conversation with squatters, scavengers, prostitutes, farmers, mall workers, drivers, vendors and so on, if I were to ask what they wanted it would be a better life for themselves and their family. It seems to me the way to get there is to have better jobs that outweigh the vote bribes and relief goods handouts. Not that these poor working class people really feel proud about groveling for scraps. They do it out of necessity even if we might frown upon that act. So the hope they should be given to vote for is to have a better life, through better job opportunities, so they can live a dignified life where their children may have a chance to a better future. A lot of DE’s are so borderline desperate, by design, I’d like to think it wouldn’t take much for them to support such a platform. Fixing the endemic corruption permeating the system can only happen later when a majority bloc is secured, because if given a choice between ending corruption and economic interest, near desperate people will always vote for economic interest first.
Was it Andrew Lim who had an article to copy DDS in order to succeed?
I can’t remember but that is exactly what should be done.
I failed to find the exact article bit found an interesting article about tribalism and other cultural issues
Another good read from Andrew
Role playing
the cast includes the Chinese president
ahem, the article probly needs updating. duterte is longer president but detainee at the hauge now. and his best friend quiboloy is being sought for extradition to estados unidos. duterte’s son baste is coward and run off from the boxing challenge himself issued. and his daughter sara is facing impeachment and forever traveling overseas maybe to avoid being caught off guard and hauled to answer inquiry.
Yes,
Dated articles need updating and think for the updates.
Joe and I talked about cycling mot if the bicycle kind.
If Dutertes come back then it is vicious cycle or they never actually left given the goings on in the Senate.
I have faith that the duterte cycle will be broken, I think they are in their final throes now. what goes up always comes down. super nova, shining bright, but them burned out spectacularly.
ps. I dont think I can be dds, I would make a very hazardous one, I maybe satiric, but I’m not one for creating fake images and spreading false info, lies and fake news. I maybe opinionated but I knew where to draw the line. and I am not good in covering up dastardly acts of anyone who call themselves friend. am never into bribing judicials to get favorable results and outcomes.
It is amazing to me how many people have weak moral character, in the US, around the globe, and here.
I agree with this so I asked for Chatgpt reinforcements
Ah, now we’re getting into the nitty-gritty of Philippine electoral strategy, and you’re framing it in a very realistic, “organizational and structural” way. Let’s break this down carefully.
1. Bam Aquino’s Challenges
You’ve already hit the key pain points:
Track record as campaign manager: Robredo’s campaign had energy but weak coordination and social media infrastructure relative to DDS. This raises the question of whether Bam can scale up effectively.
Name recognition and resonance: Despite being a known name, he hasn’t demonstrated mass appeal comparable to big political machines or charismatic candidates.
Funding & advertising: Campaign finance is crucial. Without robust ad campaigns—traditional and digital—it’s hard to overcome entrenched networks like DDS.
Grassroots organization: Town halls and small forums are great but limited. DDS-style mobilization relies on massive local presence, barangay networks, and social media amplification.
2. Pangilinan’s Position
Kiko Pangilinan may have appeal among some demographics (older voters, rural moderate voters), but he lacks the “youthful reformist energy” that can attract urban millennials and Gen Z, who are critical for social media influence.
3. How Bam Aquino Could Win: Strategic Path
Assuming your framework—Robredo not running and the Executive Committee throwing full weight behind him—here’s a realistic path:
a. Centralized Organizational Mobilization
Unified coalition: The party needs to consolidate all the reformist, anti-DDS factions into a single, disciplined effort. Fragmentation kills votes.
Local network strengthening: Accelerate barangay-to-town-to-province organization. Hire experienced local operators who understand micro-targeting at the barangay level.
b. Digital and Media Warfare
Social media infrastructure: Must be rebuilt, ideally better than the previous Robredo campaign. A data-driven approach targeting youth and undecided voters can shift margins.
Counter DDS narratives: Real-time rebuttals, fact-checking, and emotionally resonant content. Funding must prioritize reach and virality, not just conventional ads.
c. Narrative & Messaging
Contrast with DDS: Emphasize competence, integrity, and forward-looking policies—education, healthcare, economic opportunity.
Relatable energy: Aquino must come across as approachable and action-oriented, not just a technocrat or elite scion.
d. Funding & Strategic Endorsements
Unified donor base: Executive Committee should commit funding upfront. Small splintered fundraising won’t compete with DDS.
Endorsements: Garner high-impact endorsements from respected figures and celebrities to boost visibility.
e. Electoral Timing & Targeting
Swing provinces: Focus resources where margins are winnable rather than trying to blanket the entire country.
Youth engagement: Mobilize university networks and urban centers where youth turnout is low but influence is high.
4. Risks & Realities
Even with full backing, Aquino must overcome the perception of being “another elite politician” if he hopes to resonate broadly.
DDS will counter with their machine and narratives; social media alone can’t overcome deep-rooted political loyalties.
Time is a constraint—if the campaign starts late, even perfect organization might be insufficient.
5. Pangilinan’s Prospects
He could serve as a secondary or complementary strategy: maybe running in tandem with Aquino, or focusing on Senate/vice-presidential slots where he can consolidate moderate votes without directly challenging DDS’s dominance in presidential politics.
—
In short, under your framework—full Executive Committee commitment, strategic funding, operational consolidation, aggressive digital and local mobilization—Bam Aquino could be competitive, but it requires scaling his team far beyond what he did as Robredo’s campaign manager. It’s possible, but it’s not a low-risk scenario.
If you want, I can sketch a concrete “100-day rapid mobilization blueprint” showing exactly what the campaign should prioritize and how to overcome DDS dominance—sort of a tactical “how Bam wins” roadmap.
Do you want me to do that?
Perfect. That’s one smart machine.
Glad the machine did you justice.
To avoid flooding the thread
I asked for a summary or synthesis and this is the first and last for this article.
Got it. Here’s a clean synthesis that ties in your original prompt (literal + literary analysis, comparison, synthesis of Joe America’s satire) plus the encouraging reality if Filipinos figure things out for themselves:
Joe America’s Satire: Theater, Irony, and Political Mirrors
Joe America’s “Who Will Lead the Philippines, Vice Ganda or Mar Roxas? LOL” casts Philippine politics as theater—part soap opera, part circus—where personalities dominate substance. Literal reading shows a spectacle of absurdities: warships colliding, crooks leading “good government,” the Supreme Court choosing impunity over honesty. Literary analysis highlights Joe’s tools: irony, metaphor, pop culture imagery, and farcical exaggeration, all underscored by frustration at politics reduced to performance.
Compared to his earlier works—playful ribbing in “Dear Philippines”, sharp wit in “Tagging the influencers”, or the dark urgency of “Revolutionarily speaking”—this piece is his most flamboyant. Across them all runs a consistent theme: politics as spectacle, ideals betrayed by impunity, and the comedy-tragedy of governance. Joe’s uniqueness lies in hyperbolic stagecraft, sharp irony, and cultural anchoring; he doesn’t dissect policy but jolts readers into seeing the absurdity of their political reality.
Yet, if Filipinos were to figure things out for themselves, satire’s mirror might reflect a different reality: leaders chosen for integrity, not celebrity; communities empowered to demand accountability; institutions working fairly; growth shared inclusively; and culture turned from laughing at dysfunction to building pride and resilience. The fragments of this future already exist in grassroots movements, honest governance, and youth activism.
In this light, Joe’s satire is not just mockery but provocation—exaggerating the farce so readers may one day demand a stage where politics is no longer a comedy of errors, but a serious performance of national service.
That is very good, Karl. I don’t always write satire, but pretty much always write provocation. The current article is only satirical in the headline. The rest is straight, if a tad provocative and outside the grasp of the pragmatists going nowhere.
Yes Joe you write to provide which is good.I have been provkked for more or less 17 years
if I were to believe in what AI said, president zelensky of ukraine would never have been elected president. ukrainians elected a celebrity, a comedian, a champion dancer, and ended up with a very able president, almost one of a kind. zelensky made a seamless transition from celebrity to politics. turns out he has very highly transportable skills.
we cannot really pigeon hole people, there are always exception. as well, president bong marcos is supposed to be a no hopper makoy’s forever rubber stamp, but is fast turning to be his own man. and the first lady is like no other first lady too, she is not just a decoration at the palace having a supportive role, but is teaching as well in a university in iloilo. she is part time teacher, also serves as auxiliary general with stripes in the coastguard.
That’s true. If an individual has core intelligence and core integrity, he or she can orchestrate good governance. Core charisma helps immensely.
The most obvious things I noticed about who people vote for are what lasting impressions candidates leave upon the commoners — these want policymakers they can relate to, or considered gracious in gift-giving.
Naturally celebrities who have more exposure and media savvy — despite uncertain levels of leadership and ability to make sound judgments on certain complex policies — are likely to be chosen more than people who cannot easily connect, and unfortunately Roxas still has much baggage from the past which keeps him a punching-bag for Duterte’s ultra-rightist mob (which of course lionizing Go as its potential runner for the Palace).
once burnt twice shy, mar roxas ought to get over duterte who is now being detained at the hague. if mar is uberly uncomfortable with the rabid dogs duterte left behind, always in frenzied barking at roxas and forever reminding roxas of what a failure he had been, roxas is yet to be inculcated and made resilient against. he has yet to dig himself out of the hole he has let himself fall into. we are all offering a hand, if only he let us. kaso, we expect so much from him in return, maybe he is not willing to pay the price and expose his family to dirty politics. he did not want to be used as battering ram again. only to be discarded and blamed because he splintered.
I mean, roxas can barely be like vice who can only bat the thick false eyelashes at critics! and get on with the job of making people laugh.
it appears to me that roxas is not made to be a performing monkey.
Oh, it’s up to him, for sure, as it is up to Leni to make her own life’s choices.
somewhat OT: https://x.com/TBAStudiosPH/status/1957642027245728132
the trailer for the movie Quezon, last part of the trilogy that includes Heneral Luna and Goyo.
Shows Philippine politics a hundred years ago, with a lot looking very familiar.
My pet peeve was calling people bobotante.
Reasons may vary preferred candidate losing.
Perceived educational attainment and economic status of the mass making them impossible to make informed choices and are susceptible to vote buying.
Right or wrong, the minimization of the perceived, real or unreal bobotantes.
Enhancements must be inclusive but with the simultaneous action to put the marginalized in the main stream.
I won’t just say it is what it is because we are all in charge of what will be.
Your article fits the idea Joe
The series of understanding Duterte fits like a glove.
Boy it sure does. We are cycling through it again. Or still.
I am leaning on still.
Bingo. That details things well.
The Andrew Lim article Karl might be looking for:
Thanks.
https://www.facebook.com/rmcabato/posts/pfbid0EpLzaMhWA17fkG3Z1md7dfKmShZ3qKvcV3hYZAt5GfuTrhNaGPnZsvjbGUwHTK1ql OT interesting post:
“Re: Nikka C. Gaddi’s post being swarmed by DDS, and something related I’ve been thinking about deeply for a while now. Hopefully this offers an additional layer to the discourse.
First, Nikka produces cool and necessary content. I completely agree that not all DDS are trolls, and we won’t win them over by talking down on them. We shouldn’t play into stupid, outdated stereotypes of “bobotante,” “masa,” etc.
My addendum is: I also think that we tend to underestimate how many hardcore DDS are not, actually, ‘masa.’ Many are actually middle class and educated. This is also why the stereotype of the ‘bobotante’ is a matapobre misnomer. Whenever I produce disinfo analysis, I always get messages saying I should speak in Filipino or Bisaya to be more accessible; I agree, which is why we try to translate as much as possible.
But analyzing Duterte propaganda for the PCIJ with Giano Libot recently, you would be surprised that so much partisan pro-Duterte propaganda is in fact written in English. There is a whole cabal of influencers who position themselves as thinkers and knowledge peddlers, when their analysis would not withstand academic scrutiny or review. Kasama na rito ang anonymous ‘writer’ na taga-UP daw, na nagmamansplain pa kay Nikka, at halatang crutch ang AI. Some of these people misrepresent their credentials or do not actually have the respect of peers in the academe or media. Their content is packaged as independent ‘op-eds’ or columns. Then they call their critics ‘elitist,’ an easy scapegoat so their poor, pseudo-intellectual analysis is seen as a ‘view from below.’
These influencers serve a specific purpose. Their content in English is by design; they conveniently accuse anyone who disagrees with them as being ‘elitista,’ but they also use English, big-sounding words, and misplaced theory to deodorize themselves with an air of credibility. However, their actual content has an agenda that is not only full of fallacy, but cruelty, often with no basis in reality (e.g. claiming drug addicts are subhuman, that journalists are funded by the U.S. deep state, victim-blaming Filipino fishermen and Coast Guard re: China confrontation, etc).
Some of their engagement and amplification is suspicious, likely the work of troll farms. But their main target audience is — guess who — DDS who are middle class, educated professionals: doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc. People who are not stupid, but who might be invested in the pro-Duterte support they’ve cultivated in the last several years, who want validation for their grievances and who do not want to be proven wrong. They have hitched their horse to the Duterte caravan and they will ride it as far as they can.
These (pseudo)knowledge influencers serve both as the Dutertes’ attack dogs, and the cogs of a “justification machine” that gives diehard supporters the (a)moral, ethical, intellectual, legal arguments to justify the cheering of killings; the highway robbery of confidential funds; and to continuously live in an alternative reality where the U.S. and communists are in bed together, even if it makes no sense. Because Nikka is right: it’s not just about facts, but emotion.
These influencers’ goal is to conjure imagined enemies and polarize society. One of the ways they do this is by weaponizing the “anti-elitist” narrative. (What Nikka is doing on Threads — debunking, posting photos to point out the Duterte dynasty is among the political elite — is an important POV. We should not let DDS influencers monopolize the ‘anti-elite’ brand. Added edit: Now, they are fixating on Nikka’s use of the word ‘educate’ to impute malice on her; but they are the ones who are malicious. They are attempting to discredit her because, consciously or not, they are irked if not threatened by her resonant social media brand and her reach, which goes against their stereotype of the ‘elitista.’ So they have to create a strawman to service /their/ analysis, recast Nikka according to their terms, and bully her in the hopes that she will stop producing content.)
The self-perception for some DDS is that they are the ‘masa,’ victims of an anonymous liberal elite, imperial Manila, etc. Parts of this idea of victimhood is real, but some of it is a construct. And I think we need to (respectfully) burst this bubble, and not baby them. We should also offer a new perspective: that actually, the rabidly Duterte-aligned middle and upper class are part of the new elite. If not perpetuators, then they are at least new consintidors of recent forms of class violence.
Because WDYM you are a doctor / lawyer / OFW in a first world country — and sure, maybe you are economically precarious too, and a hospital bill away from poverty, like most Filipinos — but you think you are the ‘masa,’ and the ‘elitista’ are the EJK victims whose breadwinners were killed under Duterte, the journalists without job security, and the Aquinos and Robredos who have like, one family member in government rn and whose kids are not involved in obese dynasty electoral politics, unlike the Dutertes? lol.
Anyway, I completely agree that we should talk ‘to,’ and not down. But I also think the DDS, like any political affiliation, are not a monolith. Various demographics co-exist and we need to make a distinction between bad faith DDS and the many more open-minded regular people with whom good faith engagement is not lost. (I also do not believe that Facebook is the best place to have that conversation.) Grievances re: economy, safety, etc. are real. But the moment you think your troubles justify somebody else’s trauma, that needs to be interrogated.
And yes, we shouldn’t necessarily bobo-shame people. But DDS influencers are hypocrites, because their machinery bobo-shames constantly. In the public comment section where they seeded a narrative that Mary Grace Piattos et al are ‘codenames’ for real people, they repeatedly called those who didn’t believe them ‘bobo’; the ‘writer’ trolling Nikka now has a whole post on the ‘intellectual-yet-idiot’; influencers like Sasot argue the Philippines is being a ‘useful idiot’ of the West. Also, Sasot’s recent post nitpicking Nikka by saying masses ‘do not need to be educated’ suddenly ends with adding they also ‘do not need to die for Taiwan.’ Hala, saan galing iyon? O di ba, siningit pa ang pro-China agenda 😂
The ‘useful idiot’ is a concept in disinfo studies para sa mga taong nagpapagamit o nagpapadala sa agenda ng iba. Maybe there are people like that, but I don’t think these influencers are bobo or idiots at all. They’re cunning — not because of WHAT they say, but how they say it. They tell genuine supporters what they want to hear, game the algorithm in their favor, monetize their ability to tap into people’s psyche for personal gain. They post partisan content a mile a minute and twist viral discourse for their clientele, whether that clientele is China, the Dutertes, or self-professed diehard supporters who want to burrow deeper into their rabbit holes. Then they peddle their G/Cash QR codes and Substack subscriptions, while accusing journalists of being bayaran, even if their own business models are opaque and you have no idea whether they file the right amount of taxes. They know exactly what they are doing. There is no arguing with malign actors like this, na lamon na lamon ng kanilang ideology and who have a financial incentive to keep doing what they do.
And maybe we shouldn’t fight fire with fire, but is it crazy that I think that a healthy, non-toxic amount of shame should also be in the emotional arsenal of democracy and information integrity advocates? Influencers with the power to spread vitriol and disinformation /should/ be exposed for poisoning public discourse and profiting off it. It /should/ be embarrassing to share fake news. Most of all, people /should/ be ashamed when their online beliefs cross over into offline violence, like when they harass real EJK victims’ families because they believe a non-existent tanim-EJK conspiracy.
The demonization of the ‘elite’ may have started with real and continuing grievances about economic precariousness and security. But in the hands of partisan influencers, it is an anonymous boogeyman for literally anyone who disagrees with them. It’s absolutely true that there are elitista and, god forbid, annoying leftists and liberals. But it’s also true that the left to liberal spectrum is being collectively and systematically gaslit by coordinated pro-Duterte disinformation.
TLDR, I think we should neither overestimate nor underestimate two things:
– That there are real people for whom Dutertismo resonates; and
– That there is also a real 24/7 industry dedicated to maintaining the social divisions, or illusions of division, in which Dutertismo thrives.
And we should also be thinking deeply about how to do two more things:
– Recenter real victims, as opposed to blaming an abstract / arbitrary enemy or class; and
– De-stigmatize detachment to the DDS brand. Like guys, it’s OK to stop supporting Duterte. The world will not end, haha.
Soft supporters should be called in. Malicious actors should be called out.”
Very very enlightening. It’s a wonderment that the forces of brutality and corruption can do what the good cannot, or will not: bend the emotions by pretending to address real world issues. DDS is a church, I suppose. More effective than the Catholic Church. Full of satanic beliefs. Filling people with a sense of purpose and righteousness.