By DAVID CASUCO
On the day influential religious leader Apollo Quiboloy, who reportedly commands six million followers, made public his anointing of administration candidate Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro and Liberal Party’s vice presidential bet Mar Roxas III, this writer was wrapping up his own two-weekend immersion “man on the street pulse” in Los Angeles county, a home to over 335,000 Filipino expats.
The large but highly fragmented Filipino community in this City of Angels, finally agreed—with Pastor Quiboloy — that is. Their preferred presidential candidate is Teodoro, who eked out perennial “commissioned” survey leader Noynoy Aquino, and for vice president, they showed so much love for Roxas.
Now, Teodoro, the presidential race dark horse, looms large as a serious contender. And the “green volunteers” are all over the Internet talking about more big endorsements coming in the next few days before the election.
Why Gibo Teodoro? Their responses can be summed in “fragments of admiration” like: "has exemplary moral moorings, unblemished public service record, shows honesty, is intelligent and articulate, has a clear and do-able platform of government, and has a good grasp on matters of statecraft.”
And for Roxas III, they consider him magnanimous and humble by playing second-fiddle to the popular Aquino. Also, they see in Roxas the new breed of leader with deep sense of patriotism.
While most of the respondents to this writer’s “man on the street” interviews refused to be quoted for publication, a few of them were not shy on their personal choices.
Gina Topacio of Los Angeles thinks Noynoy should be president because he is pursuing a legacy of “uncorrupted public service and heroism” of his family. On the other hand, Jay Lopez of Sun City thinks the Philippines would be a lot better with Gibo Teoldoro at the helm. “You can tell he (Gibo) is honest. Also he is clean, he has no anomaly attached to his name. For his part, Jules Paguio of Eagle Rock, a staunch supporter of Dick Gordon, thinks the former Olongapo mayor has what it takes to be president. “He is so good. He understands the complex operations of the government.”
On the question whether they have an influence on the choices of their immediate family members back home in the Philippines, the answer is always yes, to a certain degree. A few said that the choices of their families in the Philippines depend on what they tell them. “I was not able to register for absentee voting╩since I am a U.S. citizen, but whatever is my choice my family (about 18 voters) usually follow,” Julian R.B. Castillo, a nurse aide from West Covina said. “That goes without saying I owe them a favor come Christmastime,” he added in jest.
“My family asked me one time who I think is the best presidentiable. I told them ‘let’s go for the best candidate.’ The last time I heard they have joined the “green” bandwagon,” said Fely Quiling of Montebello.╩ Quiling, a born again believer, said she will just pray for a peaceful and orderly election. “Sana wag naman masyadong violent,” she said.
Gregorio “Meng” Gatus, president of the Filipino American Community of Los Angeles (FACLA), the oldest Filipino organization in the United States, said it does not matter whoever gets elected as president, the thieving and the looting of the government coffers╩is not going to go away. “Kahit pa sino ang umupo dyan, hindi pa rin mawawala yang nakawan.”
Gatus, revered and reviled in equal measure for his uncompromising and straightforward style of FACLA governance, thinks the Bagumbayan team of Richard “Dick” Gordon and Bayani Fernando is the best bet. “Pareho sila maganda ang rekord, ang ginawa nila as public servants (They both have impressive records as public servants”), he said.
Everything considered, the man-on-the-street sortie yielded this result: Teodoro and Gordon are the cerebral choices; Noynoy is the sentimental choice; Roxas the choicest VP bet; Miriam Santiago, Bong Revilla, and Jinggoy Estrada are top three choice for Senate seats.
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