BINAY SPOKESMEN By Philip Philip Jr Lustre Vice Presidents Jejomar Binays political free fall is a function of the quality of his spokesmen, or talking heads. Sounding like a bunch of circus performers, his spokesmen keep on making outrageous statements, mainly lies and outright denials of the corruption charges against their principal or hardsell promotional stunts on imagined accomplishments and virtues of the Vice President. They hardly help the Vice President. On the contrary, they keep him marooned in the sea of controversies. Binays first spokesman, former newsman Joey Salgado, who also dabbles as official spokesman of the Office of the Vice President, is fine. Once in a while, he assists the Vice President by issuing official statements. But Salgado could only talk with his pen. He is camera shy and inarticulate particularly on the nagging political issues. Salgado is trained to write but not to appear on television and speak. He is not telegenic, either. This pushes the Vice President to conscript the services of three other political spokesmen, who are disasters in their own right. They appear afflicted with the dreaded foot-in-the mouth disease. The second spokesman, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiongco, in his capacity as spokesman of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), has been issuing political statements on Binays behalf, but it is difficult to believe if ever his statements leave a mark in the national consciousness. On national television, Toby projects an image of a spoiled brat, a cross between a drug addict and a hippie, leaving questions on his credibility. Toby projects pugnacity and belligerence, a many times less cerebral male version of Miriam Defensor Santiago. Since Toby is ineffective, Binay has to recruit the third spokesman, Cavite Gov. Juanito Victor Remulla, a softer and milder version of Toby. If Toby is the fire eater, Jonvic is the snake oil salesman, or the asslicking Chauvin, who keeps on spouting every conceivable virtue that could describe his embattled boss. For him, Binay could do no wrong; with his infallibility, he is Gods gift to Philippine politics. But in the midst of the nagging controversies, Binay did not see the services of the three talking heads as sufficient for his growing requirements. He has to get the services of JV Bautista, who could work as his spokesman and lawyer at the same time. If Toby is the fire eater and Jonvic, the snake oil salesman, JV is the proverbial one-man wrecking crew, who has been hired to plant his stink bombs in the public mind. But after detonating two bombs against Sen. Sonny Trillanes, JV is proven to be a master of duds. None of his bombs exploded on Trillanes; on the contrary they exploded right on JVs face. The problem with JV is that he does not know that he pisses in his pants. That he stinks publicly is farthest from his mind. Not much could be credited on the three Binay spokesmen. Their statements do not reflect sterling qualities or substance that could be quoted many times over in history. They are best consigned to oblivion. They are best forgotten because they do not leave anything productive in the public mind. On the contrary, their presence only complicates the situation for the Vice President, who is the fifth spokesman for the Binay cause, or non-cause. Binay enjoys talking publicly even if he looks like a fumbling clown before the public. His message is simple. Binay wants the Filipino people to believe that he is no thief when he does not want to appear before the Senate to air his side under oath. Binay wants the people to believe that he is a paragon of virtues, when allegations of corruption and other wrongdoings keep on piling right on his backyard. Binay wants the people to believe that he is the most qualified to become the next president, when he could hardly prove that he is a man of integrity and competence, or that he is the man of the hour. Binay and his spokesmen could not arrest his political fall out. Somehow, he has to bite the bullet by doing the expected - appear before the Senate, give his version of the story under oath, confront his accusers, and reshuffle his spokesmen. It is also best for him to withdraw from the presidential race and save whatever sense of personal honor is left in him.
Posted on: Thu, 30 Oct 2014 08:06:16 +0000
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