So convicted-mutineer-turned-Philippine-‘senator’ Antonio Trillanes IV has reportedly accepted a challenge from Vice President Jejomar Binay to a debate. Interesting and exciting times ahead! Trillanes will, of course, presume to grill the VP on the vast properties he allegedly owns. Binay will likely be denying. Hovering on top of all that will be Trillanes’s erstwhile “good” friendship with Tony Tiu now purported to be the “dummy” holder of Binay’s supposedly ill-gotten assets.
Note that Get Real Post author Ilda fielded the Solomonesque solution to the Binay-Trillanes circus in her previous article, Why Filipino voters will still choose Jejomar Binay to be the next President of the Philippines…
The more intelligent way to try and defeat Binay would be to engage him in a debate on how he intends to solve the most pressing problems facing the nation today.
But then and but of course…
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Unfortunately, Binay and his political rivals are probably avoiding a public debate because it could expose their incompetence to the voters.
Philippine VP vs Philippine ‘senator’ face off!
May the better face win!
I’m not quite sure what Binay’s strategy will be in this face-off with Trillanes, but one thing I’d be curious to know is what Trillanes envisions to be the outcome of this Senate “probe”. After all, Senate probes, we are told, are always conducted in the aid of legislation. So perhaps one of Binay’s first questions to the ‘senator’ could be around what exactly his legislative agenda is that is relevant to this ‘probe’.
On Trillanes’s part, he will probably have to open with a salvo around why he did not do his homework before going on record about his “good friendship” with alleged Binay “dummy” Tony Tiu. Indeed, he supposedly had explained this noteworthy aspect of the circus many times before. Still, that video of him singing praises to the wealthy taipan has pretty much implanted itself into the psyches of many Filipinos — a kind of political Inception consistent with the premise of that 2010 Leonardo di Caprio movie. Once doubt creeps in, it is difficult to remove.
Another thing to consider is that Binay stands “accused” of mere corruption. Corruption is such a banal offense that routinely goes unpunished in Philippine society. Indeed, so pervasive is corruption in Philippine society, that its practice transcends social class and practically all demographic verticals in the Philippines. The fact that Philippine Congress is now widely regarded as the country’s biggest criminal syndicate thanks to the institutionalised pork barrel thievery Filipino voters routinely tolerate is a testament to the wholesale disensitisation to corruption that characterises Philippine society as a whole. In that respect, Binay holds the advantage. His alleged crime is less-grave in the eyes of the average Filipino voter.
Trillanes, on the other hand, is a convicted mutineer. In the various armed rebellion excursions he’s led and participated in over the first decade of the 21st Century, Trillanes had deliberately put thousands of Filipino civilians’ lives at risk. That he was given a presidential pardon on the basis of the hollow rationale of Philippine President Benigno Simeon ‘BS’ Aquino III makes his motives in this circus rather suspect. Trillanes obviously owes certain people big time. And he has been pretty consistent with the zeal he applies to paying up.
The more important question to ask, nonetheless, remains quite simple. What exactly will be achieved?. Other than offer a good show, debate will not actually resolve anything other than subject both bozos to public scrutiny and the judgement of public opinion. Other than that, neither will likely be held to account for their respective transgressions against the Filipino people. Hopefully, at the very least, the better statesman will emerge from this little stunt.
benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.
[q]debate will not actually resolve anything other than subject both bozos to public scrutiny and the judgement of public opinion[/q]
Actually there is, we can at least partially analyze the debate to determine who is a liar and deceiver.
In other places people announce “the circus is in town”.
Not here, it’s in town on a permanent basis.
So everything is a ‘Circus’ now? Laude issue is a circus, Binay issue is a circus. What is not a circus to you GRP people?
“What is not a circus to you GRP people?”
Anything without Clowns in it would qualify.
Yet here you are. You are one of us Jarvis. YOU are part of the circus. Here put this flashing red nose on.
It’s probably going to be no different from that Face to Face show. I think I’ll just wait when the brouhaha quiets down and get the quick highlights on who pulled the most hair out of their opponent.
Pareho lang silang dalawa. Isang nakapangurakot na at isang nagsisimula pa lang. Ang pinagkaiba lang ay mas magulang si Binay. Obvious naman na pag pinagreport mo din ng SALN si Trillanes eh siguradong mabubuko yung mga kotse niya. Isama na nila si Cayetano na halatang nangangampanya na dahil sa TV ads niya at si Pacquiao na umaabsent sa Congress meetings at hindi ginagawa ang trabaho niya. Dapat talaga ipatupad na ang FOI Bill para wala nang mudslinging, iisa lang naman sila ng maduming kural na pinaglalaruan.
Next elections are going to be a bitch. Persinally, I’m for “NONE OF THE ABOVE.”
Binay-Trillanes debate on who is the more corrupt of themselves is a waste of time. We need Debates about how to solve our country’s problems…not who is the bigger thief.
Audience, who will be spectators of the Debate, must be twenty (20) people only. Selected by Random Raffles. People who want to be in the audience, must put their numbers in a transparent container…and concerned citizens must pick these numbers randomly.
These twenty (20), people will write their questions…directed to either Binay or Trillanes. If Binay is requested to answer the question. Trillanes will have a chance of Rebutal. They must have ten(10) minutes allowed for answer and for rebutal.
Three (3) lights must be visible to the Debaters. Green light for time is still his/her. Yellow Light ,for one(1) minute still left to answer/rebute. Red Light , is time is up.
There must be a Concerned Citizens: Commitee on Public Debates…to manage this Debates.
Let us see , if these politicians have brains in their heads…people will analyse their answers or rebutals, after the debate…
English or Pilipino can be used in the debate…
Watch out, if those people who want to be selected are Binay men, or Trillanes men. The audience selected must come from all walks of life in the Philippines. Not dummies of these politicians…
Unfortunately 90% of Filipinos are dummies when it comes to politics. But I know what you mean.
We have to start somewhere…the trouble is: we lack concerned citizens to better things. People just don’t care…this is the reason, Politicians are running around freely; stealing everything, including our childrens’ future…and some of them are barely educated…
Spot on. For once, i’ve thought that the legislative and judiciary body of the philippine government have merged.
Time to restock my popcorn.