THE UNKNOWNS Senate bets run on God-centered politics

Originally Posted on: 14 May 2007 @ 01:34 am

THE UNKNOWNS Senate bets run on God-centered politics
By Christian V. Esguerra, Inquirer

MANILA , Philippines -- The tall man, grinning, offered handshakes to shoppers. A total stranger, he was welcomed anyway at the Greenhills "tiangge" in San Juan yesterday.

"I am Dr. Martin Bautista. I am running for senator under Ang Kapatiran (The Brotherhood) party. I am not a traditional politician," he told curious strangers huddled around him.

"Bautista who? Ang Kapatiran what?" was the quietly polite reaction of the shoppers. One went further and asked: "Do you have any chance of winning?"

Bautista, 44, knows only too well it's a tall order to go against a bunch of senatorial hopefuls parading celebrity wives, prominent names and bottomless campaign kitties.

But the gastro-enterologist would not have abandoned a lucrative medical practice in the United States if he was not convinced of victory, or at least a shot at it.

Bautista left for the US a year after he graduated from the University of the Philippines in 1989. Throughout the 17 years that he spent as a physician in New York and Oklahoma , he aid he never applied for a green card.

Last year, he came home for good, bringing with him his wife, a UP-trained pulmonologist, and four young daughters.

"Life is short, so better spend it by doing something good for your country," he said in an interview at the Ang Kapatiran headquarters at Greenmeadows in Pasig .

Ang Kapatiran ( Alliance for the Common Good) is a political party put up three years ago by Nandy Pacheco, the well-known advocate for a gunless society. The party promotes God-centered politics and calls for the abolition of the "pork barrel" and gambling, among other advocacies.

Aside from Bautista, the party is fielding three other candidates for senator Mario Ongkiko, Zosimo Paredes and Adrian Sison, who are all lawyers.

Except for Ongkiko and Paredes, the two others are unknowns in politics.

"All the pundits are saying that we won't win, but that's a defective concept," said the 50-year-old Sison who specializes in family law and taxation cases.

"We're praying that the people will finally wake up and realize that there are genuine alternatives to traditional politics and politicians, " he said.

There's an abundance of idealism among th e four candidates, including Ongkiko who has been practicing law for the past 50 years. At 75, he doesn't really need the prestige and clout that come with being a senator to cement his place in the sun.

"I can earn enough to last me my lifetime. But I'm not thinking of myself. I'm doing this for my children and my grandchildren," he said.

So it is also with the 58-year-old Paredes who is best remembered for publicly criticizing the transfer of an American soldier, the convicted rapist Daniel Smith, to the custody of the US Embassy.

It cost Paredes his job as executive director of the presidential commission monitoring the implementation of the Visiting Forces Agreement.

Paredes clarified that he would not use the issue to land a Senate seat. He said he had no intention of even mentioning the name of the Filipino woman who accused the US Marine officer of raping her.

"I won't mention anything about it unless I'm asked. I didn't even know that many Filipinos appreciated what I had done," he said.

Pacheco said the decision to field senatorial candidates in May was meant in part to educate Filipino voters who have become inured to traditional politics.

"The people are truly fed up with what they see," he said.

"If [the Kapitiran candidates] win, it will be a clear sign that Filipino voters are becoming mature," he said.

"Three lawyers and a doctor who are dedicated to God can do a lot to make a difference in the Senate.

They all vow to vigorously pursue the Kapatiran vision "to bring back the teachings of God into the center of politics." This is the response of Pacheco and his peers to the Second Vatican Council's idea of an "empowered laity."

"The laity must lead in the renewing of politics," says one of the group's leaders.

The party is clearly "pro-life," is for "progressive disarmament" in the national and international level, and regards as a priority projects for the homeless, elderly, prisoners, disabled, veterans and the youth. Kapatiran is also unique in vowing to discipline members for any wrongdoing.

Ongkiko said theirs was the only genuine political party, noting that both the administration' s Team Unity and the Genuine Opposition were carrying candidates who used to belong to the other side.

"There's no opposition or administration, it's just a fantasy. They don't have a platform. All they want is to win," he said. Paredes said that some administration and opposition candidates would eventually "cancel each other out," paving the way for Kapatiran candidates to be noticed and eventually fill in the spaces in the magic 12.

"It's like seeing a streak of white in a backdrop of black," he said.

The Kapatiran candidates are banking on the honest support of well-meaning Filipinos to make up for their lack of political machinery.

"We ask the people to run our campaign, to champion the cause of change," Ongkiko said.

The party has launched a project called "Alay Panglinis Pulitika" to invite campaign donations. It has also quietly enlisted the support of a number of parish-based organizations, including the wide-ranging Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs). Not being entitled to poll watchers, it will rely on groups like the Parish Pastoral Council for
Responsible Voting to ensure honest elections in May and indirectly safeguard their votes.

The campaign strategy is quite different from the traditional political gimmicks the sunny smiles, colorful dress, catchy jingles and celebrity endorsers that this early are threatening to dull the taste of Filipino voters just three days into the official campaign period.

Ongkiko, Paredes, Sison and Bautista will basically rely on the best of intentions and work to effectively communicate them to voters.

"We will talk seriously and sanely to our people," Paredes said.

For Bautista, the presence of God will help in the communication job, much like what the Holy Spirit did for St. Paul and the Apostles when they spread the good news nearly 2,000 years ago.

Yesterday, Bautista was on a one-man campaign at the densely populated Greenhills area. Offering nothing but flyers, a sincere greeting and a clear legislative program, he was not shunned as just another nuisance candidate.

It's a good start for someone who doesn't ride on the popularity of a former president, does not sing or dance, and is not the husband of a movie star, and nor a movie star himself.

Don't pick lemons.

"The Lord is all I have, so in Him I put my hope." -- Lamentations 3:24

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-- so on may 14 remember these names:

1. Martin Bautista
2. Zosimo Paredes
3. Adrian Sison


(Pls. pass to your mailing list or inform everyone you know. May God help us make the right choices.)

Note: Ongkiko is no longer part of “Ang Kapatiran” because he didn’t push through with his candidacy.