There is an adage that says, “Early bird catches the worms.”
But will this apply in the forthcoming national and local elections? From the looks of it, the opposition believes so, hook, line and sinker. Observe what’s happening now in various platforms of social media. It looks like the anti-administration trolls are all over.
On Facebook, of all the total posts during a particular day, more than fifty percent is devoted to chastising both the official and personal aspects of the President and those who the opposition thinks are likely desiring to run for the top two highest positions in the land – the Presidency and Vice Presidency.
We have also noticed that the most regular name in the social media posts is that of a certain Manuel Laserna Jr. He may or may not be the real name of the person but from the way he castigates the personalities allied with the present dispensation, it is as if he and his minions could not see anything positive that the Duterte Presidency has done to the country.
The words these anti-Duterte trolls are using are revolting to the stomach in the real sense. In fact they extoll to high heavens the characteristics of the Aquinos as leaders of the land; that they were the only ones and those who align with them have the qualities to lead the Philippines and the Filipino people.
So, today with all the advanced activities of the anti-administration trolls, anyone who looks only the country’s condition as painted by them, will most likely be goaded into believing that the President and those working with him are a bunch of useless, incapable, and corrupt officials out to perpetuate themselves in power.
It is also our take that they want to fight the Duterte regime using the very same strategy he did in the 2016 election. That is maximizing the use of social media in getting into the consciousness of the people. And they are starting the pincher-like attack, perhaps believing that it would work to their great advantage.
But then, again, there is also another saying, “Don’t underestimate the man under the mango tree.” How much more if the man is already on top of the mango tree? In other words, we are certain the administration will not take all those premeditated attacks using foul language and invented scenarios of the country just sitting down. The administration “brains” may probably be saying, “We can’t be bullied with those social media harangues, we’ve been there and have done all those things.”
Maybe for now, the administration could be doing an FPJ in his movie. That is, that he lets himself get mauled several times before he launches his own counter offensive. And he is armed not just with all the guts of an avenging leading man in the movie but like a true-to-life personality. He is backed by the people no matter how he does his fight because he identifies himself with them.
Do the majority of the Filipinos believe that they need some still aspiring heroes from the opposition ranks? Or would they go for the one who they could count as one among them through thick and thin?
We are therefore anxiously waiting for the administration to let go of its own denizens from their existing troll farms to start throwing the muck they have raked from the opposition’s and open critics’ closets and use these as their tools in their counter offensive.
For certain, this election season will not be a case of who has the more muck to throw but who throws these more effectively and believably. The excitement is just heating up. We will see.
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Time and again Davao City mayor Inday Sara Duterte-Carpio denies she is running come May 2022 election for the Presidency. Even her father, the President, is saying he is advising his daughter not to.
On the other hand, despite the inclusion of Vice President Leni Robredo in the list of possible nominees to run under the opposition banner, she is still not admitting that she will accept the nomination much more than run for the Presidency. The only thing consistent that she says is that she is not closing her options on the matter.
But recently, in a sudden verbal tussle between the two women on the issue of handling the CoViD situation in Davao City, it appears that their real intention was betrayed. Both the Vice President and the Davao City Mayor were already arguing like they were candidates.
Now we are led to believe in the saying that in the normal process of line and hook fishing, the fish is always hooked on its mouth. Yes, any discerning political observer can easily read their words between the lines.
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