By ELLEN T. TORDESILLAS
I have lost track counting the number of somersaults that President Aquino and his spokesmen have performed on the issue of whether he wants to stay in Malacañang after his term ends on June 30, 2016.
To save myself further aggravation, I decided to “like” President Aquino’s Facebook Page which was brought to my attention by singer Leah Navarro.
Navarro, a certified PNoy loyalist, said: “ Have any of you visited the President’s Facebook page? It’s Noynoy Aquino P-Noy . It has over four million likes. You’ll see a clamor for the President to stay on for another term. It’s pretty awesome – thousands of people have posted, commented on, or just ‘liked’ this suggestion that he stay on for another six years.”
The Constitution provides only one six-year term without re-election for the President. For him to stay in Malacañang after 2016 would require Charter change or elections would have be cancelled in 2016.
Now I believe that “kung sakaling itutuloy ang 2016 elections (if elections in 2016 will push through)” statement by Press Secretary Edwin Lacierda three weeks ago was not a slip of the tongue nor inadequacy in Tagalog nor stupidity. It’s part of their game of taking people for a ride.
Last month when Interior Secretary Mar Roxas first suggested that Aquino run for another term in 2016, amplified by Aquino himself in his interview with TV5’s resident legal analyst Mel Sta. Maria, I gave five possible reasons why Aquino floated Cha-Cha to allow him a second term and clip the powers of the Supreme Court.
The five reasons were 1) he doesn’t want to be seen as a lameduck, 2) he has not gotten over the Supreme Court’s 13-0 decision on the DAP or Disbursement Accelerated Program ; 3) there is no one in his party, the Liberal Party, that can beat Vice President Jejomar Binay in the 2016 elections; 4) he is enjoying the Presidency and if he can get away with another six years, why not; 5) Type lang niya i-gudtime ang madlang pipol.
Now, I’m more convinced it’s number five: Type lang niya i-gudtime ang madlang pipol.
Why am I saying that?
Last Friday in a gathering of Aquino allies in Malacañang where he made another State-of-the Nation address (his second in less than three months), he said, “I know that the 2016 elections are already on the minds of some. Indeed, the time will soon come when the straight path will choose a new candidate. I hope it isn’t me.”
The audience laughed. Do you find it funny?
In an interview with the editors and reporters of the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Aquino said there is still time to amend the Constitution contrary to the opinion of some analysts. “, might do even better in a second term,” he was quoted by the Inquirer as having said.
In his Friday speech, Aquino said, “I still get told, or even get sent text messages: About how it is my duty to look for who will replace me, and to train him for the responsibility. That it is my duty to help further everything we’ve begun. There are even those who say that the surest way to secure the straight and righteous path is if I myself continue leading the country. I cannot disregard the suggestions of open-minded people, of people who have sincerest intentions to help their fellow man.”
In the Inquirer interview, Aquino was quoted to have said, “If many people come to Luneta (to persuade him to stay) I might find it hard to say No.”
In the count of Aquino’s FB Fan page, I was number 4,078,091.
Run, PNoy, run!
There is wisdom in Napoleon Bonaparte’s strategy “Not to interfere with the enemy while he is in the process of destroying himself.”