Noynoy na!

A new blog featuring an open letter to former president Fidel V. Ramos from his niece made a buzz at the political scene this week. In it, she asks FVR to endorse Noynoy. She sums up the argument for Noynoy/Mar - "...he (Noynoy) is now the one candidate with the potential to unite the opposition against the ruling party. For his part, Mar is no slouch, moreover, and the Liberal Party appears to have some progressive elements."

Philippine politics is characterized by a weak party system. Political butterflies abound. That is why many different configurations or tandems for president/vice president are floated around. The situation is very fluid. You can hear possibilities of a Villar/Loren, Villar/Chiz, Chiz/Loren, Chiz/Ping, Gibo/Loren, Chiz/Dick, etc. Any of which is a real possibility. Now that Chiz decided to bolt from the NPC, the possibility of a Gibo/Chiz may not be far-fetched despite the previous anti-GMA stand of Chiz. The administration says it is open to a Gibo/Chiz team.

Consider this: Chiz's tweet last night indicated that he might be supporting the gerrymandering bill that gives Dato Arroyo a congressional district. With that tweet, Chiz hints of an alliance with an Arroyo son and at the same time takes a potshot at Noynoy. Noynoy is opposing the bill.

Chiz portrays himself as a follower of the Quezonian "my loyalty to my party ends where my loyalty to my country begins". It is not immediately clear what party stand he is against. Why Chiz would shun party politics this time after doing so in all his political life gives credence to rumors that the NPC boss, Danding Cojuangco, would finance only a fraction of his campaign.

By now, it is clear that only the Noynoy/Mar tandem stands squarely against the current administration. All the rest can be seen to offer to or gain some accommodation from the administration. All the others do not consider the interests of the country. They all belong to the parte-parte party. With them, patronage politics will still be in place.