‘I can imagine that it would require an Erap or an FPJ in their prime to give the Sara-Isko combo a run for its money.’
WITH the dust from the midterm elections still settling, political types (myself included) are already talking about 2028. And with good reason: the campaign for the presidency started the moment the last ballot was cast and counted for the midterms.
And the midterms have, at least in my book, left the 2028 race quite open. While it’s not wide open so that anyone stands a chance, it is also not a sure thing for anyone, especially since most of the recent elections have resulted in what Vergel Santos calls “accidental presidencies.”
Yet there are some “llamados,” two to be exact, from where I sit. They are Sara, the Vice President of the Philippines and the FPFD (former President’s First Daughter); while the other is Sen. Bong Go (SBG), Senate elections topnotcher and the FPRHM (former President’s Right Hand Man).
Sara clearly has the advantage of being one heartbeat away from the presidency (at least as of this writing), but she also carries the bloodline and the family name. In a country still enamored with political families, this is a major advantage.
SBG, on the other hand, was for six years considered the way to FPRRD – his eyes and ears and gatekeeper and, I am told, the holder even of the former President’s mobile phones. No one – and it was what it was, no one – could get to FPRRD, the story went, without going through SBG. Now that’s power.
Or was.
What do I refer to by “DSS 2028”? I’m referring to a tandem that could take the country by storm.
Duterte-Domagoso Sweep 2028.
Yesterday, just as I was about to type out this piece, I saw a news report quoting the Mayor-elect of Manila saying that he has no intention of running for higher office in 2028. I respect that but I take those words as I take a political opinion survey – it is a mere snapshot of the moment. So I also don’t take those words as carved in stone, as I have lived long enough to see so many politicians utter the same promise only to break it. Especially if “the people clamor for it.”
And it’s easy to get the people to do so!
But think of the combination: Sara brings all the loyalists of her father into the fold, and a solid Mindanao, while Isko brings the masa of Luzon and Visayas – and that’s not a wrap, it’s a sweep. I can imagine that it would require an Erap or an FPJ in their prime to give the Sara-Isko combo a run for its money. But as I scan today’s political horizon, I see no combination that could stop this one.
It will require another “accidental presidency” that Vergel Santos talks about – meaning someone or some combination we could not even imagine at this point.
Or an impeachment, perhaps.
Barring such, it seems to me that 2028 will be much more of an “it’s all over but the shouting” if this DDS 2028 combination takes shape.
Place your (early) bets?
