A tale of two cities: The Cayetanos and the Binays
The on-going Senate investigation on the so-called overpricing of the Makati parking building puts into focus the on-going war between two political families, the Binays of Makati and the Cayetanos of Taguig. Those who do not know the background of these two families would readily conclude that this political hullaballo is a sequel of the long and nasty legal turf war on which city has territorial jurisdiction over the Bonifacio Global City, which means billions of tax revenues. The legal community knows very well that the latest decision of the Court of Appeals was in favor of Makati, that is: most of the Global City does not belong to Taguig, a reversal of an earlier ruling of the trial court.
The truth of the matter is that the tale of the two cities is just a tip of the iceberg. The root cause of all this political drama was the much divergent political beginnings of the Cayetanos and the Binays. One must know political history to recall that the patriarch of the Cayetanos, the late Senator Rene' " Companero" Cayetano, was aligned with Senator Juan Ponce Enrile while the Binay patriarch, now Vice President Jejomar C. Binay was aligned with the opposition to Marcos. Rene Cayetano was a second stringer to JPE when he was plucked by Manong Johnny from the ACCRA Law Firm and was entrusted as Managing Partner of PECABAR, which was the Ponce Enrile Cayetano Law Offices.
Cayetano was an unknown figure in the national politics and even in the Taguig local politics. He became prominent when the then popular radio and TV anchor Jel Santos-Relos regularly put him on the air in the program Companero Y Companera. Then he played a prominent role in the prosecution of Hubert Webb et al, in the famous Vizconde massacre and rape case. It is widely known in Paranaque, especially in BF Homes where Vizconde, the Webbs, and this writer resides, and the Cayetanos then owned an international school, that Rene Cayetano played a crucial role in the prosecution and eventual conviction of Hubert Webb. Rene Cayetano also helped in the promotion of the judge that convicted Webb, et al, Judge Amelita Tolentino to the appellate court.
The patriarch of the Binays was a staunch oppositionist while Cayetano was aligned with JPE who was Martial Law's main implementor, being the Defense Minister, before he jumped ship and led the EDSA rebellion with then Chief of staff, General Fidel V Ramos. And so, there is really no love lost between the Binays and the Cayetanos. Currently, the Binays are with UNA, formerly PDP-LABAN with the Pimentels, before they had their own falling out. The Cayetanos are aligned with the Villars. Strangely, however, both the Nacionalista Party of the Villars and the UNA of the Binays have a "de facto" political alliance with Malacañang.
And so, what is our point? The point that we want to drive at is simple. The Senate investigation of the so-called Makati's "most expensive parking space" is just an episode of the long political war between two titans. It is a war between two families, so bitter and so difficult, not unlike the Shakespearean drama between the Capulets and the Montagues. I know of other similar wars. In Cebu, the Cuencos and the Osmeñas were mortal enemies until they made the Osmeña-Cuenco Fusion. Then, there was the Osmeña versus the Duranos. Look at them now. They both support President Noy.
In Iligan, the Dimaporos and the Quibranzas used to ''kill each other'' in the political arena, until one Dimaporo male married a Quibranza girl. Now they live happily together. That is how to end a tale of conflict - to make love not war.
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