Maybe Mar should court Noynoy
For whatever reason, nobody seems willing to be the runningmate of Mar Roxas. He tried Grace Poe. She not only declined, she confronted Mar about people close to him who she suspects are behind what she perceives to be attacks on her person. Then he tried Vilma Santos. She did not bite. He also tried Leni Robredo. But she is not interested as well.
Maybe Mar should try his luck with the men. There is Rodrigo Duterte, who apparently cannot make up his mind whether to stay local or go national. But if the Liberal Party can assure him of total support all the way down to his native Davao City, which he clearly refuses to give up but which can be handed over to a relative or trusted surrogate, then maybe he can be persuaded to come on board.
But other than the need for a runningmate, I am sure Mar would be very uncomfortable with a man like Duterte breathing down his neck. Mar needs a loose cannon like a hole in the head. Besides, a Mar-Duterte tandem looks too bottom-heavy. Put another way, Mar would look like the bride rather than the groom. A pair like that can boomerang down the line.
There is Alan Peter Cayetano who is not impervious to any opportunity to reach higher office, it being his ultimate goal to someday be president of this country. In fact, when it appeared that Mar was having a very hard time convincing the girls, Cayetano came forward and offered himself. When that apparently to come in too strong, he did a little tweaking by saying his Nacionalista Party was still assessing its options but that he was open to any possibility.
Chiz Escudero is already under contract to Poe so he is out as far as Mar is concerned. Also out of the picture is Bongbong Marcos. Even if a Mar-Marcos team would be a very strong team, I do not think the Liberal Party and even the country is prepared for such a tandem. Besides, Bongbong may have his own plans. And so that leaves Mar back to square one.
And this brings me to something that may seem preposterous but is not entirely impossible -- a Mar Roxas-Noynoy Aquino tandem. Given the difficulty of Mar in finding a runningmate and given the self-proclaimed similarity in their platforms of government, what can be a more potent team, at least as far as the Liberal Party is concerned, that to go Mar-Noynoy?
Noynoy has already proven he can go where his friends tell him to go. If, in the interest of the Liberal Party, they need to ensure a continued stay in power, and such continuity can only be assured by the strongest possible tandem they can find, then a Mar-Noynoy team should be seriously considered. There is nothing in the law that bars that team-up.
How it may look to the Filipino people should be of no concern to either Mar or Noynoy, much less to the Liberal Party, whose only concern is to stay in power. Noynoy is not the kind of person to give a damn what people think. If he feels like doing it, he will do it. His track record is ample proof that Noynoy is impervious to anything once he has set his mind to do something. If the Liberals can persuade him on this, then it should be a go.
As to Mar Roxas getting squeamish considering the self-righteous posture he and Noynoy have adopted, his blind ambition can easily pull the wool over the unsavory picture they would present. Besides, have tried everything -- from driving tricycles to carrying sacks to milling rice -- what is a little walk down the aisle with Noynoy as his bride.
It is not really a problem for Mar. He would do anything to become president. Noynoy may hesitate a little. But if the right people whisper the right words into his ear, he just might do it. And a Mar-Noynoy tandem will certainly make topsy-turvy the entire political landscape in 2016. It will be a horse race like no other. Not even a Grace Poe run for the presidency will be as certain. And Binay, whoever he too will end up with, will be crying in the sidelines.
Remember, however, that while a Mar-Noynoy tandem is possible and is perfectly legal, it is still something that I loathe, for the same reasons that I have always been critical of the hypocrisy that has marked every bone and sinew of this administration. I bring this possibility up now only because it is possible and not because of anything else.
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