‘Democrazy’ is alive in the country

Democracy is in full bloom once again at the Commission on Elections  (Comelec) where even wackos and weirdos are allowed to file certificates of candidacy for senator and other elective posts.

One of the “unconventional” candidates was Daniel Magtira, 57, of Tondo, Manila, who said that if he got elected as senator, he would promote Pinoy rock; that is, if “[he] would not be disqualified [again] by the Comelec.”

Magtira claims he’s a former husband of television host Kris Aquino.

Anson Tuana, 39, will solve the traffic problem and inflation if he becomes senator. He claimed he once had a “one-night stand” with resigned Presidential Communications Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson.

Tuana told amused reporters he was “chummy-chummy” with Chinese President Xi Jinping who, he said, provided him with clothes and bodyguards.

Before he filed his certificate of candidacy, “King Salam” Emilio Delfin Lacan Luisong Tagean made an impassioned speech in which he vowed that the country would have its own astronauts and cosmonauts. He said they would be called “kinunot.”

King Salam comes from Bicol where one of the favorite dishes is kinunot—ground stingray cooked in coconut milk.

On the other hand, Benjamin Rivera, a refrigerator technician, filed his certificate of candidacy for Manila mayor. He has been running for mayor and president since 1998.

He reminds me of a guy named Tabije, a janitor-messenger at the National Press Club years ago whom some reporters urged to run for Manila mayor.

When the ballots were counted, Tabije got five votes, one from himself and the rest from the mischievous reporters who lived in Manila.

That’s why democracy—a government, as Abraham Lincoln said, of the people, by the people and for the people—is sometimes called “democrazy.”

No matter what critics say, it’s vibrant and alive in the Philippines.

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It seems it’s going to be Binay versus Binay in Makati City’s mayoral race.

Current Mayor Abby Binay will run for reelection while brother Junjun is eyeing a comeback after the Office of the Ombudsman kicked him out as Makati mayor.

The Ombudsman’s decision has since been overturned by the Court of Appeals, so Junjun wants to get back what he lost.

The patriarch Jojo, who is running for a congressional seat in Makati, favors Abby while sister Nancy, a reelectionist senator, backs Junjun.

It’s a merry-go-round in the country’s business capital.

No matter who wins, it’s the Makati voters who will end up at the losing end.

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Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano is resigning to run for Taguig congressman.

Cayetano, whose sister Pia is among those leading in surveys for senatorial bets, says President Digong wants him to become House Speaker.

If this is true, Alan Peter will be on a head-on collision with the present Speaker, Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who is also a Duterte ally.

I’ll bet you that GMA will retain the speakership since she has the numbers.