‘Second rate, trying hard, copycat’

“You’re nothing but a second rate, trying hard, copycat.”

Those famous lines uttered by Lavina (Cherrie Gil) versus Dorina (Sharon Cuneta) in the series “Bituing Walang Ningning” suddenly come to mind as I think about the ongoing Senate investigation a.k.a. “character and political assassination” of Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Yes, the words “second rate, trying hard, copycat” come to mind especially when one remembers that when then Senator Manny Villar had announced his intentions to run for the presidency, he soon learned what political persecution and “character assassination” meant especially coming from a fellow Senator named Juan Ponce Enrile. I remember back then that Enrile used decades of experience and legal knowledge and media showmanship to build up a case against Villar and his real estate empire, beginning I think with allegations that the Daang Maharlika road was being built solely to benefit Villar’s business projects.

Unfortunately or fortunately, Villar did not have an honest to goodness “dirty tricks department” who understood how to deal with such attacks and dish out the same amount, considering his primary critic had more than enough skeletons in his closet. In the end, Villar was a businessman and not a full-blooded politician capable of being a pit bull in a dog fight. In hindsight, Villar did not lose anything except a momentary battle with JPE whose parting words were “trabaho lang.”

Six years after, Villar continues to be a rich and prosperous businessman now minding his own business, eating fishball when able, the Daang Maharlika remains an ongoing project proving it was a legitimate need and a legitimate government project. And Villar’s harshest critic, Juan Ponce Enrile is figuratively behind bars, detained in a police hospital, no longer hogs the limelight and probably spending time waiting for P-Noy to leave office in order to get out of jail, unless of course God decides to retire JPE permanently.  

In the case of Vice President Binay, his “attackers” remind me of “copycat killers” that are often featured in crime and police stories on TV. The attack on VP Binay is so very much like the one done to Villar and partially done to FPJ, specifically the media treatment as in harsh criticism and unrelenting focus on the topic, which is suspect or can be considered as an organized and well-funded media campaign. Right now, some talented reporters and investigative journalists should research on who was behind the Villar attack and the end-game media attacks on FPJ, and now on VP Binay because the similarities are uncanny.

While everyone is focused on Trillanes and Cayetano, there is a possibility that election and campaign operators, both local and foreign, were and are behind the dirty tricks operations. Demolition jobs are not centered on “visible enemies” alone, there are also PR experts and operators who spend money to keep the issue burning and there are media slaves and allies who actively fan the flame or maintain the level of attacks because they have a common goal or a common enemy.

What makes the whole thing smack of a “copycat crime” is the fact that it is being done against the leading presidential candidate, being done through a prolonged, extended, and constantly stretched so-called Senate inquiry that has morphed into an investigation and has become a full-on shameless political assassination of Binay. The only difference that JPE himself might point out is that he is a first-rate prosecutor and persecutor compared to Trillanes and Cayetano. Enrile undoubtedly was more “suave” by focusing on one sin rather than the sins of an entire family. One thing Enrile would never have fallen for was the invitation to a debate that painted Senator Trillanes for an ego-tripping macho-fueled operator. A proper Senator would not have deviated from the inquiry and an astute politician would have resisted the poisoned fruit.

What may or could have been a major victory for Trillanes and Cayetano has unfortunately started to melt like dropped ice cream on hot asphalt. For starters they lost track of the game plan and the rules. No amount of justification will erase the fact that both Senators, particularly Trillanes have given statements to the media showing contempt, judgment and an agenda that goes beyond legislation. In fact, the Senate sub-committee has behaved as Judge and Jury as well as state prosecutor, which in fact is an abuse and a trespass on the Judiciary.

The second mistake in their operation was for Senator TG Guingona to allow Trillanes and Cayetano to run the entire inquisition perhaps being as hesitant as Pontius Pilate to publicly support the crucifixion of Jesus-Joseph-Mary Binay or “Jejomar” for short. Instead of delivering a conviction, the dynamic duo made a mockery of the process and unwittingly discredited all their own hard work.

At this stage it has become apparent that the entire Senate inquiry got overcooked and has taken so long that the sane members of media have lost their appetite. Yesterday’s hearings did not garner the same multi-station coverage they used to get and I’ve noticed that opinion writers have preferred to stay away from the orchestrated media circus.

From my vantage point, Binay’s enemies will want to go for blood, which in this case means making sure they send him to jail just like Senators Bong Revilla and Jinggoy Estrada because Binay still manages to maintain a slight lead in surveys. Only by putting Binay in detention can they significantly minimize his ability to operate and campaign and if they fail to do so, unlike Villar who has moved on, I think Binay will only settle for removing or decapitating some people’s head literally or figuratively. People may have poked fun at him by calling him Rambotito but Jejomar Binay has spent his life fighting against the odds and while he may opt to talk first and fight later, I can see him as the lead role in “The Unforgiven” and his enemies going: “Jesusmaryosep!”

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