MANILA, Philippines -- Go ahead and run.

Pampanga Representative Juan Miguel Arroyo dared University of the Philippines professor and Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Randy David to make good his plan to run for his congressional seat in Pampanga just to foil President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s purported plan to run for Congress as a way to shield herself from suits if not to preserve her hold on power.
"Walang problema yan [That’s not a problem]. He can go ahead and run. This is a good opportunity for a reality check for Professor Randy David,‘’ said Rep. Arroyo, who maintained that he was preparing for a run for a third term as congressman of Pampanga’s second district, not his mother.

While he acknowledged David as a "brilliant man’’ whose family was "well entrenched’’ in the second district, Arroyo said that the academician could be in for a "rude awakening’’ with a first-hand experience in politics.

"These electoral exercises could be a good gauge to show whether his grievances against the President are shared by his constituents,’’ said Arroyo, who claimed to be "close’’ to some of David’s siblings.

Arroyo refused to comment on whether David was justified in his motive for seeking a congressional seat though he acknowledged that it was largely based on "hatred’’ for his mother and a desire to foil her supposed plans to seek a congressional post ostensibly to seek immunity from lawsuits after she steps down or to become prime minister under a parliamentary set-up if the Constitution is amended.

Speaker Prospero Nograles said he was surprised by David’s reason for diving into politics.

"I respect Randy David’s decision to run for congressman in Pampanga. Except I got surprised that it’s only because he disliked PGMA [Arroyo] and not the usual reason for running, which is for public service. Anyway the very big question is, if at all he ever wins a seat, he will have a first-hand experience inside the halls of Congress and may suddenly find out that some of his public criticisms might not be correct or justified at all. At any rate, good luck to Randy,’’ said Nograles in a text message.

Nueva Ecija Rep. Rodolfo Antonino said that it was David’s right to run "if he thinks that he is serving the people by trying to beat GMA [Arroyo].’’

"It will be the people who will decide and put this `higher than mighty’ people in their place,’’ said Antonino.