‘It’s still someone else’s
to lose, yes — but you can
count on Ping Lacson to try
with all his might to create the momentum for that swing!’
WHO do you think won the debates? Who do you think had the best performance? Who do you think answers best?
These were the usual questions that Pinoys were asking of each other during the weekend, following the airing of the Jessica Soho presidential interviews. It has to be made clear that it was not a debate where one candidate would defend his or her position while attacking someone else’s; it was a far more informative exercise than that, with the candidates being asked to answer a host of questions within a certain time frame.
Some questions were common to all of them while others were tailored to address certain issues being raised against the specific candidates.
I took the time to watch the over 2.5-hour online version, complete with all the online adverts that were tacked on to the program. I thought it was worth my time and I wasn’t disappointed. Not that the performances were spectacular — maybe the format didn’t allow for that — but the fact that you could hear a candidate comment on a certain issue or answer a certain question was good enough at this time for me.
Who won? Hands down, the winner was the Filipino voter who cared to watch, listen, and learn did. Jessica Soho was a close second.
As for the participants, this was my reaction.
I felt that Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson gave the most presidential performance of the four aspirants. From his answers to his demeanor and to the vibe he was emitting, I felt that he came off with the best “presentation” of his candidacy despite the limits imposed by the format.
I felt that VP Leni Robredo and Mayor Isko Moreno also acquitted themselves quite well, but for some reasons I rate them a shade lower than Sen. Ping. Sen. Manny Pacquiao was far from a disaster; in fact, he fielded the questions well, and, like the three others I may not have agreed with some of his answers but I valued the effort.
It was a great disappointment that former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. chose not to participate. I think even by just showing up he could have won points, not to mention fielding tough questions meant for aspirants for a really tough job.
If we were to give them a grade based on the UP system I would give Sen. Ping a 1.25, VP Leni a 1.5, Mayor Isko a 1.75 and Sen. Manny a 2.0.
Of course, if you don’t show up you get a 5.0.
Not surprisingly, I sensed that a number of my friends read the performances the same way. To them, Ping was head and shoulders above his rivals on many aspects, and in my book had the least “errors” in not following directions during the “one word description” part. That’s good news for his campaign; the question is, how many Filipino voters have actually made up their minds? And how many are open to changing their minds on the basis of one or two performances — as I am told he also acquitted himself well with Tito Boy Abunda.
Could there still be a swing for Ping? He himself believes so, telling Jessica that the campaign (which hasn’t even started yet!) is a three-month period during which so many things can happen. True that — but in a zero-sum game things have to start moving this early so that enough momentum builds just in time to take you first across the finish line on Election Day.
It’s still someone else’s to lose, yes — but you can count on Ping Lacson to try with all his might to create the momentum for that swing!
