That is not the life many politicians would choose these days: To star in an action TV series where they go down the savage criminal underworld to beat up the baddies.

In a great many cameos on Black Rider on GMA-7, DILG Secretary Benhur Abalos is cast as a populist Interior minister, parrying steely knives, breaking villains’ arms, putting their lights out.

There are dark alleys and sketchy neighborhoods; super villains; ultra-magnetic evil Garbage Man.

And then there’s Benjie. There’s nothing minister Abalos can’t fix.

He is the bat signal over Gotham.

Granted, it would heap whopping results at the multiplex, as much as Mr. Abalos has been churning results in real life.

The series packs a worthy message: To those who raise mischief, Benjie is coming for you. With a brutal kapow.

It marries rhetoric with a tangible job well done, a total departure from a country where the title used to be deemed to be a mere plaque on the wall, one that’s rather more closely tethered to Mr. Abalos’ save-all, everyman image.

Snippets of his appearances issued on the jumbotron in a swank ballroom in Metropolitan Manila, where the polite society and bureaucrats, in dominions big and small, from every side of the political aisle turned up to celebrate Benjie in his evening hour: mayors, governors, legislators, the President.

They flew across the breadth of the country to a special assembly that hobnobbed about the beloved boss and colleague in the government.

The testimonies were outsize.

“Benjie the blunt-talking leader.”

“Benjie, Mr. Plain-hammered Action Man.”

Most times it was imbued with warm reminiscences about how the day they met Benjie was the day he saved their lives.

“Simply put, he was slightly short of a superhero.”

“Oh! I’d be delighted to see Benjie toss his full head of hair mounting a mean horse.”

What do you know, the renaissance man is horse-racing pioneer, too.

After praises were sung over scaled-down carousing, amuse-bouche and a Lazy Susan lavish with a Chinese array that pined for longevity and good luck, hands were put in contrition to wish Mr. Abalos more glad tidings and send good returns to his merry way.

Happy birthday, Secretary Benjie Abalos!

Perhaps it’s true one measure of success is when you’re surrounded by a lot of faithful friends. How did you do it?

Say, great sir, is it hard work?