Reversals of political fortunes
“The political battleground in the 1st District of Davao del Norte is Tagum City, where the total number of registered voters exceeds those of the province’s five towns combined."
Daily Tribune“The political battleground in the 1st District of Davao del Norte is Tagum City, where the total number of registered voters exceeds those of the province’s five towns combined."
We are a year away from the midterm elections, but already, some radical changes on the Davao Region political horizon are taking place with mind-boggling speed. Those who are lording it over Davao del Norte and Davao de Oro are suffering from the sweltering heat and a political climate that is as unpredictable as it is fatal to their political fortunes.
Former House Speaker Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez is on his last term and planned to enjoy a three-year respite when suddenly he is hounded by a possible case of sedition as Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has threatened.
The National Security Council, the heads of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the Philippine National Police are likewise after his neck after he surprisingly called for a withdrawal of support from President Bongbong Marcos Jr. He explained later that he was carried away by his emotions and his love for Mindanao.
Bebot is fielding his wife for the congressional seat in the 1st District of Davao del Norte. If the current Acting Governor, De Carlo “Oyo” Uy, sticks to his original plan to vie for the same seat, he can have it for a song.
The incumbent Governor Edwin Jubahib has been suspended for 60 days for grave abuse of authority and oppression. Since his suspension on 8 April — signed for President Marcos by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin — Jubahib has refused to vacate the governor’s office. However, he moved to the governor’s residence located within the capitol grounds last week.
Jubahib is still facing another case before the Ombudsman, and there is no telling what fate awaits him.
The political battleground in the 1st District of Davao del Norte is Tagum City, where the total number of registered voters exceeds those of the province’s five towns combined. Tagum Mayor Rey Uy, the father of Oyo, remains the man to beat. His possible opponents are hounded by cases arising from investment scams that flourished during their incumbency and victimized hundreds of Tagum residents and those from as far as General Santos City and Metro Manila.
With the devastation of the Partido Reporma, skippered by Bebot Alvarez, the governor’s post in Davao del Norte is not even up for grabs; it is up for the picking by whoever the grand coalition chooses to run.
I say coalition because the Partido Reporma has polarized the various political players in the province. Even as the Uys were unceremoniously expelled from the Hugpong ng Pagbabago, they remained supportive of the Dutertes. Talking of a gubernatorial bet, I heard from the grapevine that fingers are pointing at Congressman Alan Dujali, the coalition’s best-performing asset.
We have a situation where some politicians are with Lakas-CMD, but this was true during the time of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Joe de Venecia. Once a political pillar of the undivided Davao del Norte, former Gov. Rodolfo del Rosario, along with the Uys and former Rep. Antonio Floirendo Jr., including incumbent Congressman Alan Dujali, were at one time or another with the Liberal Party, Lakas-CMD and PDP Laban.
However, their values, constituents’ interests, and priorities transcend party affiliation. Thus, when Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte ran for president, Davao del Norte, which was considered Liberal Party turf, campaigned tooth and nail for him.
Duterte, who ran under the banner of PDP Laban, does not have a single party member to campaign for him in the province. That predicament was the re-entry door of Bebot Alvarez to revive his moribund political career. His role was to campaign for Duterte to become president. His sponsor was his bosom friend Tonyboy Floirendo.
Duterte, Tonyboy, Bebot, and the rest of the company won, with Bebot later capping his political fortune as Speaker of the House of Representatives. But the Fates played a naughty joke on Tonyboy. His best friend, the Speaker of the House, filed a case against him before the Ombudsman, leading to his conviction by the Sandiganbayan. The Supreme Court, however, reversed the decision.
Fast forward to the present, the Fates again played their mischievous role. The polarization of political forces remains. On one end are Alvarez, Jubahib and Davao de Oro Gov. Dotdot and husband Rep. Ruel Gonzaga against the coalition of various political forces welded into one cohesive group to terminate the reign of the Partido Reporma.
Elsewhere in the region, only Davao Oriental is unpredictable after Gov. Corazon Malanyaon’s untimely demise. Davao del Sur and Davao Occidental are still the domain of Cagas and Bautista, respectively. Davao City remains solidly for Duterte. The Davao Region is Duterte’s country, and the unprecedented popularity and influence of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte cannot be belittled.
FPRRD is so immensely persuasive that the petrified powers that be scuttled the scheduled prayer rally of the Hakbang ng Maisug in Bustos, Bulacan.