The ongoing “tele-Senate” premiered last 11 May when Senator Tito Sotto was unseated by Senator Alan Peter Cayetano as Senate President. It is said that the characters did not follow the script. Reports to this day circulate that Senator Loren Legarda wanted to be the lead actress by convincing her colleagues to make her Senate President. Apparently, that didn’t happen.
She’s now even being branded a turncoat by shifting allegiance without informing former allies Sotto and Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson. So, there was treachery to thicken the plot. Deception? That story twist was assigned to Senator Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa since he was obviously tricked into showing up at the Senate — without him knowing that an arresting team from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was waiting for him in the building.
By 13 May, the “tele-Senate” turned full action with a shootout that made the scenes from Batang Quiapo look like a production of Walt Disney. It depends on one’s political alliance. Some say it was staged. But there are others who believe there was a real threat at the Senate that day.
The acting workshop, however, was initiated by Senator Risa Hontiveros when she made a privilege speech that drove Senator Pia Cayetano to tears. Hontiveros simply called out the Senate for “making the 13 May gun-firing episode appear like it was a normal incident.” Hontiveros’ delivery of her privilege speech must have been so heart-wrenching, it made Cayetano cry.
When it was Cayetano’s turn to speak, she said that she was so scared for her life when guns were fired at the Senate — to the point that she had to say goodbye to her children. Some wise guys on social media immediately crowned her “best actress.”
All the incidents happening at the Senate are so disturbing that the public is losing its respect for the institution. Anyone who has a platform should write or speak about it because — as Hontiveros said — the shooting incident “was not normal.” From my end, I will try to tackle the ongoing Senate scandal in the most non-partisan manner possible. For this edition of The Butcher, I will go back to that period when some members of the Philippine Senate were still in showbiz full-time.
Imee Marcos — Very few probably remember that Senator Imee Marcos once dabbled in entertainment. People of this generation, of course, are aware that she had a hand in the production of Maid in Malacanang and Martyr or Murderer. But in the 1980s, she was the head of the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines that produced classic films — actually some of the greatest Filipino movies of all time: Himala, Misteryo sa Tuwa and Oro, Plata, Mata.
She also acted on stage. Imee played the lead in Repertory Philippines’ production of The Diary of Anne Frank. In 1980, she also hosted a quiz show on IBC-13, the title of which, sadly, I no longer recall.
But did you know that Imee was offered to star in Insiang, the now-classic film of Hilda Koronel? Two years before it was made into a film, Insiang was shown as an episode in the drama anthology, Hilda. Of course, it was Hilda who played Insiang — under the direction of National Artist for Film Lino Brocka.
However, when Lino decided to turn Insiang into a film in 1976, he initially tried to cast against type. So, why not let Imee Marcos play Insiang? When I asked Imee how serious the offer was, she said, “Brocka was dead serious.”
But shooting the movie with Imee in the lead would have been a security nightmare. Insiang was shot in the toughest section of Tondo, Manila. Her father, the late Ferdinand Marcos, Sr., was still president at the time. The entire Armed Forces of the Philippines would have probably been sent there to stand guard. Insiang with Imee Marcos never materialized. It has since become a classic with Koronel in it.
Risa Hontiveros — Hontiveros first made a name for herself as a member of Repertory Philippines. Her most notable role was in The Sound of Music where she played Louisa. (Lea Salonga was Brigitta.) She also did voice acting in the animated series Candy.
Hontiveros also tried broadcasting in both GMA and IBC-13, but the public hardly remembers her in that field. However, just like in the Senate, Hontiveros always took her job seriously. She once co-hosted the now-defunct Gawad CCP Para sa Telebisyon with Pilita Corrales. An unlikely combination, if you ask me.
Pilita, already a seasoned performer by then, just coasted along during the presentation and came out very relaxed. She couldn’t help but chide Risa for memorizing the script to the last, comma, period and exclamation point. But then, that’s probably how she works and this has given her a fine reputation as a senator.
Jinggoy Estrada — Jinggoy wasn’t taken seriously as an actor in the beginning. He wowed even film critics, however, when he proved he could do comedic punches which he displayed in Jose Javier Reyes’ Katas ng Saudi. He excelled just as well in the crime-drama Bente, which was directed by Mel Chionglo.
Lito Lapid — A former stuntman, Lapid never passed himself off as a great actor. But he was an action superstar — just like his late uncle, Jess Lapid, Sr. Even as a senator, he is not one to do grandstanding. He was, in fact, always criticized for “merely occupying space” and was hardly ever heard in the august halls of the Senate.
But as recent events have shown, there is virtue in silence. Since he stays quiet all the time, the public is unaware that he has actually passed a lot of bills — some of which were co-authored though — that have been turned into law. And, please, let’s forget about his anti-stapler bill in 2006. As it turned out, he has done a lot more than that — quietly.
And in this ongoing Senate drama, Lapid is fast gaining respect for sticking to his principles. While everyone is trying to outtalk each other, there he is — quiet in his corner. For once, can all the other senators be like him?
Loren Legarda — Legarda has won all the awards available in the field of broadcasting starting from the mid-1980s till the time she ran for the Senate in 1998. She anchored The World Tonight for a decade and also hosted Pep Talk and The Inside Story for ABS-CBN.
Loren, however, has an acting credit. She played as herself in Markova, Dolphy’s film about comfort gays during the Second World War. How did she fare in the movie? In an episode of Startalk in 2000, Rosanna Roces called her performance “jamonada” (ham acting).
When Pia cried in the Senate Hall, Loren was among the first to comfort her. Loren shed what seems to be real tears. Netizens wickedly voted her “best supporting actress.”
Unfortunately, Loren will never be crowned homecoming queen at Assumption College, where she studied from elementary up to high school. Didn’t they take down her photo there in the gallery of empowered women? And neither are the students at University of the Philippines pleased with her. Never mind if she donated P2 million to the state university’s College of Mass Communications a couple of years back.
Robin Padilla — Robin always had this strong screen presence even when he was just starting in secondary roles in TV dramas. Through time, he managed to polish his craft — until he won a Gawad Urian for best actor in La Visa Loca. He was also excellent in 10,000 Hours.
Then, he ran for the Senate. He never got a good review as a politician. And look at the mess he is in right now in this “tele-Senate.” Robin should have just stayed in entertainment. For his own good and for the good of many.