By Robert B. Roque, Jr.
Mayor Joseph “JB” Bernos of La Paz, Abra has undoubtedly scored a landslide win as the new congressman representing the province. His jaw-dropping lead over his rival was about 115,000 votes.
Backtracking a few weeks before the polls, Bernos was indeed prophetic in stating that he would secure the congressional seat. But what’s troubling is that his foretelling happened in a fit of rage — as captured in an audio clip that went viral on social media — as he cursed, berated, and threatened DZRH correspondent reporter Romeo Gonzales.
Now that Bernos has clinched 137,542 votes (as of 5 p.m., May 13) — despite that chilling and distasteful phone call to Gonzales — the mayor who’s soon-to-be national legislator must move away from petty outbursts and exhibit more moral restraint and respect for press freedom to deserve the votes that he earned.
To be gracious and level-headed is but a modest ask of him — a basic trait to cultivate in Congress — if only to make up for the 19 times he dragged Gonzales’s mother into insults and the 9 “gagos” he peppered throughout his tirade. Summed up that’s 28 slurs in total — or roughly one insult for every 4,912 of his supporters — not exactly the gratitude voters expect of him.
Senate numbers shifting
The Senate math is starting to whisper — and it doesn’t bode well for those banking on Vice President Sara Duterte’s political demise.
She may have lost the plot in the House, but the story shifts in the Senate, where 16 votes are needed to convict. And guess what? Her camp seems to be quietly racking up the numbers — five clear loyalists, a few more who owe favors, and a handful who simply want to dodge the chaos.
If these names hold — Go, Dela Rosa, Marcoleta, Marcos, Padilla, the Villars, the Cayetanos, the Estrada/Ejercito — the math no longer adds up for a conviction. And if that trend locks in, the impeachment trial could end not with a bang, but with a shrug.
The Marcos camp may have started this fire. But with Davao flexing its muscle again — and her father still drawing power from a jail cell — it doesn’t seem to be over yet.
I’m in no way behind Inday Sara as she navigates the hard questions of accounting for the money of the people. But it’s distracting to see how her fate seems to improve in the hands of the Senate.
Why am I not surprised? If anything, that’s Philippine politics: when the numbers move, the tipping point nears, and power shifts yet again.
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