In politics, timing is everything
By Al S. Mendoza
BARRING a catastrophe, Bongbong Marcos will become our President five days from now.
That’s on June 30 to be exact, signaling the second coming of a Marcos 36 years after Bongbong’s father was deposed as president in the bloodless Edsa People Revolt on February 25, 1986.
But unlike the elder Marcos’ oppressive-laden tenure lasting nearly 21 years, BBM’s reign is for half a dozen year as provided for in the 1987 Constitution.
Too short?
Yes if BBM would prove to be “the good one” as JV Ejercito’s political campaign jingle went.
No if BBM would prove to be like his father: a sly operator.
History loves to cajole mankind; it shocks when we are at our most vulnerable state.
Who would believe Bongbong would become our 17th president?
Before May 9, only Imelda and, yes, Lisa believed.
Mother believes and so does the wife.
That’s a given, as sure as the sun rises in the east as the cliché goes.
BBM’s ascension will also mark the end of the six-year term of President Duterte that began on June 30, 2016.
Mr. Duterte will not simply fade away, the sunset still a distant threat to the man known for his cunning and masterful political maneuverings.
He basks in the glory that is Sara, whose rapturous victory in the battle for the country’s second highest position is more than an overwhelming approval of Digong’s uncanny style of administration.
Who knows he might yet see his daughter score a sensational win in the presidential election of 2028?
At 77, Digong still looks very manly and fit for a barroom brawl.
Fate has been kind to the non-covetous few, you know.
Tita Cory never coveted the Palace and, yet, she became our president in 1986.
PNoy never coveted the Palace and, yet, he became our president in 2010.
And, yes, Digong never coveted the Palace and, yet, he became our 16th president in 2016.
Oh, yes, there are many who tried to covet Malacanang. Many failed.
One was Grace Poe in 2016.
Grace was actually in a hurry to get to the Palace.
PNoy had wanted her, no, begged her to run as Mar Roxas’ vice president in 2016.
She refused, a decision that broke PNoy’s heart.
It was PNoy who appointed Grace as chair of the MTRCB (Movie & Television Review & Classification Board), a move that expedited Grace’s full return to the Philippines after living in the US for quite a while.
It was the general belief that had Grace agreed to run for VP in 2016, she would have handily won.
That could have paved the way for her clinching the presidency last May 9. In politics, timing is everything.
Isko Moreno was the Grace Poe of 2022.
Isko was also very in a hurry to capture the Palace that he couldn’t wait to finish his mayoralty term in Manila that started with a flourish.
Had Isko completed his three-year tenure, his expected reelection victory would have augured well for his shot at the Palace in 2028.
But he bungled it, his chaotic campaign producing one boo-boo after another and ending up his run disastrously.
He is now damaged goods. It will take a miracle before he could mount a successful comeback.
There is never a shortcut in politics.
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