Rama, Labella and the gift of discernment

The serial opportunists who have been itching to do a second political somersault in less than two years should not feel disappointed by presidential daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio’s announcement that her Hugpong ng Pagbabago is not “ready to go national,” as their aim remains to be the creation of a strong Region 11.

She did not really slam the door on them because she left open the possibility of forging alliances with other political parties. That should be enough opening for the turncoats to worm into the good graces of the Davao city mayor whose reputation as power broker has soared dramatically since the dismissal of House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.

Duterte-Carpio has not categorically admitted that she had a hand in Alvarez’s ouster but the political butterflies needed no such confession and started moving en masse to where they believe the nectar was more abundant. “We did not foresee this growing interest of politicians from other regions,” she acknowledged.

Poor Alvarez. Poor Koko Pimentel. Both have been unseated from the positions of leadership that became theirs because President Duterte won with PDP-Laban. Losing their exalted positions in Congress was bad enough, now they’re facing a mutiny from a number of party mates who have even dared replace them as party secretary-general and president, respectively.

Alvarez and Pimentel are likely to overcome the intramural and keep their positions. But the open display of defiance and the resulting dogfight that we can expect to happen in the next few days, unless President Duterte himself intervenes, will stain the PDP-Laban forever and diminish its standing as the country’s party in power.

There is no need for PDP-Laban members to transfer to Hugpong, the president’s daughter declares. That is hardly reassuring to the former. Politics is about winning. That is the nature of the beast. The dramatic struggle for House leadership was viewed, rightly or wrongly, as a fight not only between Alvarez and Sarah but also between the PDP-Laban and Hugpong. At the height of the squabble, Pimentel even urged PDP-Laban congressmen to rally behind Alvarez. Obviously, they did not listen to him as Sara, represented by Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, won. As the title of the ABBA song goes, the winner takes it all.

Meanwhile, in the local front, Vice Mayor Edgar Labella and former Mayor Michael Rama were seen visiting Archbishop Jose Palma last Thursday afternoon. Labella left ahead, though, accompanied by Mabolo barangay captain and Cebu City ABC presidential candidate Niña Mabatid. Rama stayed behind.

I’m sure they did not discuss politics. The archbishop would not allow that. So what could they have talked about? The virtue of humility, which includes both awareness and acknowledgment of one’s limitations?

I still have to meet someone who will say that Labella or Rama could win against Mayor Tomas Osmeña in a three-cornered fight. The unanimous decision is that Osmeña will knock them out. Labella and Rama acknowledged this, too, but neither one is willing to give way, not yet anyway. Or will they ever?

I still have to meet someone who will say that Labella or Rama could win against Mayor Tomas Osmeña in a three-cornered fight