Pilots of the Ill-Fated C-130 Blame for Soldiers' Death

  By Mortz C. Ortigoza

I have fondness about the military cargo plane C-130 Hercules manufactured by Lockheed Martin because I have been riding it countless of times when I was a kid and a teenager.

This every time my Air Force father had R & R (soldier’s jargon on Rest & Recreation or furlough) from Awang Airport in Brgy. Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao to the jungle asphalt and glittering chrome neon lights buildings of Metro Manila through the then Nichols Air Base in Pasay City.

When a Philippine Air Force’s reconditioned 1987 model Hercules aircraft crashed in Patikul, Sulu last Sunday and claimed 52 lives of its 96 passengers, I browsed the local aviation pages at Facebook and learned the nitty gritty of the flying behemoth.

The C-130s since time immemorial became not only the work horse of the Philippines but countless military all over the globe on combat activities and during calamities.

It is a 92 passengers capable aircraft.

Photo Credit: Philippine Daily Inquirer

Geez, have you read the 96 Pinoy soldiers and civilians as based on the Manifest or Passengers List I mentioned earlier?

The C-130 with tail number’s 5125 was overloaded unless the American has an average kilos of each of the passengers as based on the bigger Caucasian Race compared to us smaller Flips, er, Filipinos.

Below are the Salients features of the Herc:

* A Hercules can carry too two M1A2 Abrams main battle tanks – those thick armored monsters that easily demolished the Iraqi's Soviet made tanks; or 7-10 8x8 armored vehicles (Stryker or LAV-25); or 16 High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV or Humvee) those that replaced the M151 series jeeps;

* This aircraft has a payload capacity of 80 tons o 80,000 kilos. It can carry up to 42,000 pounds of cargo;

* The 5125 tail number aircraft was a former United States Air Force (USAF) C-130H manufactured in 1987 by Lockheed;

*It was delivered by pilots of the United States Air Force assigned in the 179th Airlift Wing of the Ohio Air National Guards to the Philippine Air Force on January 29, 2021;

* It was part of the two refurbished Lockheed C-130H "Hercules" four-engine turboprop military transport and cargo aircraft in 2019 to beef its existing fleet of four C-130s under the 222nd Airlift Squadron of the 220th Airlift Wing;

*The cost of acquisition for the two C-130s was PHP2.5 billion. It was co-financed by the Philippines for P1.6 billion and the US through its Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program worth PHP900 million;

* It departed last Sunday morning Villamor Air Base in Pasay City to Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro, and ferried there military personnel to Jolo Sulu Airport where it crashed in a village in the mountainous town of Patikul in Sulu province with 96 soldiers on board, including three air force pilots and five crew, civilians while the bulk came from the 4th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army.

*It is one of the three Hercules that thudded in Naga and Davao City, and gutted by fire before it took off in Clark in years in 1993, 2008 and 2019, respectively.

***

Monday dusk, I found an actual mobile phone footage took by an amateur – probably a soldier - at the side of the runway in Sulu how the fast descending plane that landed hard 500 feet beyond the threshold of the almost 6,000 feet runway, overshot it, and instantly emit a cloud of black smoke at the forestry area.

Here under the reactions of those people who witnessed the tragedy:

“Wala! Wala! Hala nawala! (Lost! It was lost. Damn it was lost!),” a boy screamed

“Hala nahulog sir! Yawa! Putang Ina! (Damn it fell sir! Devil! Mother f*cker!),” a Cebuano speaking soldier told his officer while cursing.

Other yelled that the transport aircraft was so fast on its approached to the runway.

Here are some of the intelligent comments I culled from the posts of people who knew what caused the mishap:

Hack2 Legends: "As a Pilot myself this guy came in too high, to hot, failed to hit his mark, failed to get the nose of the aircraft on the ground fast, failed to realize he could not stop, failed to apply full throttle to do A GO AROUND. This is the most basic thing you are taught as a pilot and this video is easy to conclude 100% pilot’s error. So sorry for souls lost and the families.

William Duval: @Prodigal Son  it’s an assault landing, the Pilot missed his landing mark and supposed to ditch the landing to go around to try again".

Jamdwn1: “Yes, from the video at 0.20 to 0.23 second mark you can see the dust of the touchdown point. The aircraft was well past the threshold of the runaway, at least 500 feet. pass it. For a 3000 feet runaway he has less than 2,500 feet to stop or "go around" ..”

EdwinArcenal: “Heavy big plane + fast landing + short runway = pilot error".

Prodigal Son: @William Duval  “I know it was an assault landing. As a former USAF Combat Controller (1963 - 1967) I have set up many assault landing strips and drop zones for C-130 aircraft and have observed hundreds of landings and drops/extractions from the C-130. From the video of the crash it is very difficult to determine (the) point of touchdown in relation to the specified touchdown zone, or the point where full power was applied. As a former USMC helicopter pilot (1970 - 1977), I also know “things happen”.

QUEUE. Ganito rin ako noong bata pa ako pipila rin ako dito sa likod ng mga soldiers - as based on the Manifest or list of passengers - to enter the back of the C-130 for my Cotabato City to fly to then Nichols Air Base in Pasay City.

Pag minalas sa steel na floor kmi naka upo o naka tayo because of our cheek by jowl situation for our three hours ride with stop overs in Zamboangga- to get some coffins in casket and even an armored personnel carrier - and Mactan, Cebu. (Photo of the ill-fated C-130 as it prepared to fly to Sulu. Picture is internet grab)

Cliff Villanueva: “My personal opinion. The weight of the cargo and pilot's error is the reason for the crash. Weight is really important when flying a plane that is why passenger planes always weight your bags before boarding, I also saw a picture inside from that plane there were really lots of soldiers on board. AFP needs to invest to retrain all the Air Force personnel and must follow strict protocols. We Filipinos have a tendency to over capacitate from vehicles, motorcycles and boats(banka). The military probably overloads their airplanes to avoid big cost of fuel or they just want to save time. Even thou their job is dangerous safety precautions must be prioritized for the protection of our military personnel.

Miguel Bisnar: ”….At least it was landing from West to East and went to the trees. Otherwise, if it landed from East to West it would have been disastrous since there a lot of residential houses going to the pier and the sea. See the map of the airport”.

***

Major General Edgard A. Arevalo -the Spokesman of the Armed Forces of the Philippines - had been heard on the television telling all and sundry that the pilots of the ill fated C-130 H were seasoned too.

But circumstantial evidences on the YouTube footage and those pilot-commenters I cited above refuted that statement.

Oh by the way, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on a Tuesday’s television interview blamed the tailwind that push the Hercules to approach the runway extraordinarily faster and pilots’ error.

READ MY OTHER BLOG/COLUMN:

Pilot-Solon Hits Chopper Crew’s Inexperience

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MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

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I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.

Panalo sa Eleksyon ang Pulitiko na may hawak sa Police

  SA USAPING VOTE-BUYING

By Mortz C. Ortigoza, M.P.A

Sa isang huntahan sa isang natalong mayoralty candidate noong magkita kamo sa isang social function, ito ang isang tanong ko sa kanya:

“Magkano ang bilihan ng boto sa bayan ninyo at kayo ay natalo?” tanong ko sa pulitiko na kilala sa Northern Luzon ang kanyang maperang political family.

“Dalawang libo isang linggo bago mag eleksyon,” tugon niya.

“Bakit isang linggo bago mag eleksiyon. Dapat sa eve ng eleksyon kayo namumudmod ng pera?” ang tanong ko.

Aniya natatakot sila ng pamilya niya kasi ang kalaban nila sa pagka alkalde ay malakas sa Police Provincial Director (P.D for brevity) na kayang utusan ng patron niyang pulitiko na hindi sila maka vote buying sa gabi na iyon.

Ani ng nakapanayam ko ang kalaban ng gabi bago mag eleksiyon ay nagpabaha ng P5,000 sa bawat botante sa maliit na bayan na may more or less 28,000 voters.

P5000 multiplied by 23, 800 voters (85% of the 28,000) equals P119 million.

Plus iyong P2,000 multiplied by 85% equals sa dumadagundong na P47.6 million.

Itong bilihan lang ng boto dito sa itaas na computation ko ay nakakalulang P166.6 million na Por Diyos Por Santo!

POWER PLAY. There are few political thinkers with as evil a reputation as the Florentine writer Niccolo Machiavelli. Machiavelli's philosophy was believed to be so cutthroat and cynically ruthless that some thought it was demonically inspired. Photo Credit Breaker Audio

Eighty five (85) percent po ang ginamit ko na computation dahil iyon ang traditional na bumubuto sa tuwing may election.

Hindi pa dito kasali ang mga panghimagas na bigayan ng pera ilang buwan o linggo bago magka eleksiyon.

Ang first class town mayor ay sumusuweldo lamang ng P130, 423 (third year of his one year term) o P1, 695, 499, 00 (a year and including his 13th month pay) o P5,086,497,00 sa tatlong taong term niya na may Salary Grade 27 na.

Bakit siya at mga ibang Alkalde sa Pilipinas ay kailangan pang gumastos ng ganitong kalaking yaman P119 milyones e wala pang P6 million ang kikitain ng isang first class town mayor sa tatlong taong term nila?

Siguro merong gabundok na salapi na tumataginting ang bayan na kayang mabawi ang mga perang pinagtatapon nila sa mga gutom na bobotantes.

DAHIL KAY P.D NATALO SI MAYOR

Another example kung gaano ka lawak ang kapangyarihan ng PD sa pagsupil sa mga may sala pag eleksiyon.

Noong Provincial Director pa si Brig. General Marlou Chan na namatay sa assassination – Colonel pa ang ranggo noon sa Pangasinan – umiiyak sa galit ang isang Mayor dahil hindi siya makabili ng boto laban sa kanyang Vice Mayor na sumagupa sa kanya sa mayoralty election. Both of them mga bilyonaryo.

Ang naghihinagpis na alkalde ay kayang magpakawala ng P5,000 per voter noong 2013 National and Local Election pero hindi niya kaya kasi pag nagpapakurong (vote buying in Pangasinan) sila andiyan na ang police na kukunin ang mga pera nila at ipakukulong pa iyong mga tig bili ng boto niya.

“Madaling talunin itong kalaban ko. Tag limang libong peso lang ang katapat ng mga bawat botante dito,” ani ng isang Filipino-Chinese na negosyante sa akin na kung saan narinig niya sa close supporters ng nakaupong reelective mayor ang kanyang kumpiyansa na manalo uli sa karera ng padamihan ng boto.

Pero nagulat si Alkalde kasi ng kasagsagan na ng bilihan ng boto binantayan na ng mga police ang mga alipores niya samantalang pinabayaan iyong kalaban - identified na kebegan at suporter ng Liberal Party at ni Pangulong Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, III at Department of Interior & Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas. Ang DILG ang may hawak sa mga bayag ng mga Heneral at Colonel ng Philippine National Police.

Napunta sa sama ng loob ang kumpiyansa ni Mayor sa Limang Libo Pesos niya dahil hindi siya makagalaw na naging dahilan ng pagkatalo at ng kanyang sakit na naging dahilan ng kamatayan niya.

PANAWAGAN SA MGA BIBILI NG BOTO

Sa mga kandidatong tumatakbo sa darating na May 9, 2022 Eleksyon, tandaan: Ang may hawak ng PD ay may malaking tsansa na manalo sa karera.

Nakita ko na iyon kung paano ipitin ng sa itaas na may hawak sa police commander ang mga kandidato para mayorship sa mga lungsod at mga bayan bayan noong 2013 at 2019 polls.

Iyong naka tsambang manalo dahil binuksan nila ang mga tahanan at mga bodega nila sa vote buying, tandaan mag innovate kayo ng ibang paraan dahil ang kalaban ninyo ay gagawan ng solusyon iyang mga raket ninyo kung paano paghuhulin ang mga nagbebenta at nagpapabili ng boto.

Pag sinugod kayo ng mga police at pinagdadampot kayo at mga voters for sale ninyo nakakahiya iyan at puwede pa iyan humantong sa madugong palitan ng putok ng mga baril sa panig ninyo at mga otoridad. May mga mamatay pa diyan, susmariosep!

Itong mga grounds sa ilalim ang gagamitin sa inyo.

VOTE BUYING, WARRANTLESS ARREST, AND PENALTIES

Remember the definition of Vote Buying and Vote Selling sa Section 261 ng Omnibus Election Code

“(1) Any person who gives, offers or promises money or anything of value, gives or promises any office or employment, franchise or grant, public or private, or makes or offers to make an expenditure, directly or indirectly, or cause an expenditure to be made to any person, association, corporation, entity, or community in order to induce anyone or the public in general to vote for or against any candidate or withhold his vote in the election, or to vote for or against any aspirant for the nomination or choice of a candidate in a convention or similar selection process of a political party.”.

Remember Section 5 Rule 113 of the Rules of Court on Warrantless Arrest?

1. When, in the presence of the policeman, the person to be arrested has committed, is actually committing, or is attempting to commit an offense. This is the "in flagrante delicto" rule.

2. When an offense has just been committed, and he has probable cause to believe, based on personal knowledge of facts or circumstances, that the person to be arrested has committed it. This is the "hot pursuit" arrest rule.

According to Section 263 and 264 of the the Omnibus Election Code, any person found guilty of vote-selling, vote-buying and other election offenses under the code shall be criminally liable and be punished with:

• an imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years;

• the guilty party shall be sentenced to suffer disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right of suffrage;

• if he is a foreigner, he shall be sentenced to deportation which will be effective after the prison term has been served;

• any political party found guilty shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than ten thousand pesos.

Iyan sa itaas ang mga basehan ng kalaban ninyo kung gusto nilang guluhin ang mass vote buying ninyo sa mga tahanan ninyo without even the benefit of the search warrant because they have a witness who personally says that a crime is being perpetrated inside your abode or property.

Pasensiya na sa mga karpentero, Laborer, embalsamador, GROs, bugaw at iba at ako'y napa Inglis ako ng di oras dito sa column o blog ko hehehe.

                    READ:   Superior Funds Key to Electoral Victory

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MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

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I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.

Trolls: Politicians Deadly Weapons to Destroy their Enemies

  By Mortz C. Ortigoza, MPA

Compared to the prelude of the various elections in the past decades, the incoming May 9, 2022 national and local polls will not only be won by charisma and money but through the trolls of a candidate. 

The last one will be based on their expertise to promote the political stocks of a candidate and their impunity to destroy the reputation of his or her opponent.

Troll means to antagonize other (persons) online by deliberately posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content (Merriam Webster).

A troll or sock puppet, who spoke under condition of anonymity, in my province told me several months ago that he was one of the countless number of paid hack commissioned by a moneyed politician for ten thousand pesos a month to act as White and Black Trolls.

White and Black Trolls

A White Troll is commissioned to post positive acts of the benefactor and debate intelligently the supporters and the paid fictitious hacks of the rival politicians.

A TROLL in his covert place while promoting his patron and spewing vitriol to the patron's rival through social media's like Facebook - a popular medium in the Philippines. Photo credit:Blog.usejournal.com 

Black Troll can be as nasty to the rival of his benefactor and his supporters who criticized his principal on the social media.

“We sensationalize in the social media news that the television or radio did not give prominence,” said by Don in Tagalog when he was interviewed by Brigada GMA News TV in a feature titled: Fact or Fake: Paano ang Kalakaran sa Isang Troll Farm.

Although this hired gun was not as perceptive as seasoned intelligent columnists and experienced and diligent editors to appreciate the nuances of politics between his patron and his perceive opponent, the cyber mob have Content Editor composed of the politician’s political advisers and allies from the media industry – who are veteran reporters, opinion writers, and editors.

These hired hands have a bigger monthly pay from their patron than those reporters in the mainstream media who are in the payroll, too.

The Content Editor – who writes the various posts for Facebook and newspapers commentary sections – relayed to his subordinates with messages in an ideal day.

“One of them is (name hidden) who sent them the messages and even the answers to rebut the sock puppets of the opponent on the social media,” my source told me in the vernacular.

                                      National Brass Versus Congressman 

When a national official signified to his media friends and supporters his and his family’s intention to run for a congressional seat, the family and media supporters of the incumbent Congressman felt threatened and jumped on him with guns blazing.

The supporters in the print and broadcast media aggressively hype the Congressman and the projects he interceded in the national government more than a year before the May 9, 2022 polls.

Those reporters and the hired trolls found relief on the monthly allowance (although minuscule for those journalists) given to them by the PR guy of the Solon amid the rampage of the Corona Virus Disease-19’s pandemic.

In Manila, a Junior and Senior Trolls received each P30,000 and P70,000, respectively a month according to the same Brigada GMA News TV that it produced in February 27, 2019.

One of the conditions to be a Sicario or Hit Man online is the recipient of the sum would create 100 to 200 fake Facebook accounts where he could spread his mayhem to the enemy and promote the stocks of his patron.

The powerful national official formed too his circle of reporters and trolls to counter the vitriol spewed with regularity by the enemies.

They even accused the family of the Congressman to impose an unconscionable S.O.P – a euphemism for a cut – on every multi-million pesos’ national government project intended to the District.

Photos of substandard pot holed and powdery highways have been posted by the cyber bullies of the national official on Facebook to show to all and sundry how corrupt the family through the collusion of the officials of the Department of Public Works & Highway.

Because of the family’s greed, the contractor resorted to these substandard infrastructures to recoup his expenses, a troll, suspected to be a member of the local media hissed.

Both the cyber mobs of the two camps mud sling each other personally by even mentioning the real names of their foes for the public to know. Pathetic, but that's how money could do to members of the Fourth Estate who want to show their bravado to their benefactors.

To retaliate on the virulent attacks, the trolls of the Solon, who hide on different names, questioned the wealth of the official who is not at par to the multi-million pesos’ vehicles he purchased for himself and his family and his generosity to give away tens of millions of pesos more than a year before the May 2022's polls to elective and appointed officials. An act that threatened big time the family of the incumbent Congressman because they used to be challenged by political sissies for their post in the past decades.

There are two types of trolls: intentional trolls and unintentional trolls.  Though possessing different motives, intentional trolls purposely disrupt internet forums, while unintentional trolls do it without knowing, both end in the same result. Texts and photo credit: Fordhamcyberculture.wordpress.com

New Battle Ground

The new battleground in the election, seen being fought in the 2016 National and Local Polls, is no longer confined in the stage during a stump, radio booth, and the newspaper pages but in the boards of Facebook, newspaper fora, and topic board rooms where the hire guns can be as nasty one can imagine in wrecking the reputation of the politician.

The capacity of these cyber mob to make havoc to the lives of the enemies by even inventing stories could shame the capability of those mainstream media practitioners who are restrained to hit below the belt the opponent because of the libel laws of the land that hang like the Sword of Damocles to them.

Trolls can hardly be sued with written defamation because they cannot be seen.

                           81 Million Facebook Users in the Philippines

There are 80.55 million Facebook users today in the 111 million populated Philippines, as forecasted by statista.com.

With say 40 million of the almost 60 million registered voters, the other moneyed opponent who resorted to the traditional campaign strategies in disseminating pamphlets, leaflets, cards, decals, stickers and other printed materials; advertisement on radio, television, and social media; and, vote buying would be less competitive to a candidate who have all the capacity to bankroll those traditional campaign techniques while exploiting his trolls that act as his online media assassin.

What makes the Filipino election unique? Pinoys susmariosep spend most of their time online in the world — more than 10 hours on the Internet a day — according to social media analytic firm’s Hootsuite.

How to be a Troll

With a subscriber identification module (SIM) card either from Smart or Globe Service Provider one can buy and makes a fictitious account in the Mark Zuckerberg’s founded social media, You Tube, Instagram, Digg, My Space, Twitter, and others and start slandering his perceived enemies.

To avoid being caught with their Internet Protocol (IP) address and be charged with the eight years’ jail time prision mayor’s Cyber Libel Law, trolls have been sending their virulent messages through their cellular phone loads held in places outside their residences.

These hired guns can become a Paul Joseph Goebbels (29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) - Nazi Germany’s Nazi Propagandist Chief – who infamously said: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. 

Listen to a seasoned sock puppet who saw how the demolition war ensued when President Rodrigo Duterte and his presidential rivals’ Senator Grace Poe, former Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas and others ran for office in 2016.

“If you hear a lie once, you don’t believe it,” said a representative of the trolling-services firm, which is linked to the Duterte Administration. “But if you hear it from 10,000 people, you start questioning what you know,” cited by Washington Post on its July 26, 2019 issue’s Why Crafty Internet Trolls in the Philippines May Be Coming to a Website Near You.

Content Editors are smarter now, they avoided texts on the social media's board instead used malicious photos of people and words to hit their opponents while avoiding algorithm to catch them and their faked searing posts pulled down by the site’s administrator.

Filipinos spend the most time online in the world — more than 10 hours on the Internet a day — according to social media analytics firm Hootsuite. The country is also one of Facebook’s biggest markets. In some cities, there are more users on the platform than the population. 

So what you say, folks? To rephrase the poser of the renowned former Fox Cable-TV Anchor Bill O’Reilly on his top rating program’s The O’Reilly Factor.

With the Pinoys propensity to plow their eyes on the cyber space, can this be their vulnerabilities that a Political Operator can make his patron exploit with truths and lies to win the 2022 Election?

 

 

READ MY OTHER BLOG/C0LUMN:

                Vote Buying sa Eleksiyon, Paano?

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MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

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I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.

Why Politicians Spend a Fortune to a Post that Pays a Pittance?

 By Mortz C. Ortigoza

Many Filipinos of different persuasions want to aspire for elective government position – from being a village official to President of the Republic.

When a pal Luvin Candari – an opinionated resident of Kidapawan City – asked for my advice what he needs to win in case he will run for the membership of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (city legislature), this I posed to him:

“May pera ka bang pambili ng boto para manalo? (Do you have the monies to buy votes to win an election?)”.

It is public knowledge that winning a public office in this country entails a candidate to chalk-up a huge financial chest to give to voters who will shade his name on the ballot.

In the 2019 election in my city in Dagupan, candidates for the legislative body have been seen through their associates during the campaign season sneaked a one hundred or fifty peso bill to the hand of a voter. Worst, even during the casting of ballots these undaunted supporters would distribute a sample ballot with the mentioned amount attached there to the electorate who enter the voting precinct.

RECIPIENTS of vote buying in the Philippines election. Photo Credit: PhilStar.com

“If you’re new bet for the councilorship you need two to three million pesos dole outs and bills for ingratiation to effectively run a campaign and win the post,” a former city veteran lawmaker told me.

An elective member of the legislature in a first class town receives an average monthly pay of P102, 140 or P3,983,460 in his three years' term - including his three 13^th month pay - as dictated by his Salary Grade 25.

Although his remuneration is a little bigger than his expenses in the 45 days mandated election period by the Commission on Election, the expenses orgy did not stop after the hustings but continue everyday (and even at night) as constituents specially the marginalized members of the local government unit continue to solicit fund for their hospitalization, burial, food, and other needs.

“It is a thankless job, even my salary is not enough I have to fork from my wallet bills to give to these folks,” a lawmaker in a first class town in central Pangasinan lamented.

“Indeed, running for public office is for the moneyed,” I retorted.

The mayorship election of the second class city was a mockery of the Omnibus Election Code because one of the candidates spent more than half a billion pesos for a Salary Grade 30’s post that gives an average of P188, 187 a month or P7,339, 293 in the three years term – including the three years of 13^th month pay - of the occupant.

Why candidates still aspire for these posts that give them a pittance in the government pay?

As a self-declared te-he seasoned Reporter and Op-Ed Writer who cut his teeth for two decades in the rough and tumble politics of the 44 towns and four cities mammoth Pangasinan Province, these are my following observations why politicians still spend a huge amount just win a post that gives them a minuscule salary:

1) PRESTIGE SEEKER: Many of these politicians are successful businessmen, member of a landed family, retirees, and former workers overseas. They don’t give a damn how much money they burned in a stump as long as they win. The reward is being looked up by the community as sui generis and the appended title of “Honorable” before their name is an ego booster the elective brass used in social function and official correspondence. This aside from being called by their constituents as “Kap”, “Kagawad”, “Councilor”, “Mayor”, “Cong”, others. Many of them have low I.Q - where they could easily fail if they take the Civil Service Sub-Professional Examination - an inferior version of the Professional Eligibility few media men like me possess. A number of these politicians are scoundrels who win the polls because of their wealth.

2) BUSINESS TO PROTECT AND TO EXPAND: Those who run for mayorship, governorship, and congressional post have business to protect if not greed to enrich themselves at the expense of the public coffer where they become more powerful by raiding the government projects worth hundreds of millions of pesos. As quid pro quo, their favorite contractor give them their 20 to 10 percent cut critics called as S.O.P in every one of those projects.

A contractor dubbed one of the congressmen in my province as Korean because of his avarice to ask contractors how much they are going to give him as grease money on the buildings, roads, and other government projects where he shamelessly asked up to 40 percent S.O.P.

“Magkano Korean (ako riyan)? (How much you will give me on that project)?” the private builders keep quoting him whenever the topic goes to his impunity to rob the coffer.

3) SHEER ALTRUISM: Altruism means unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others (Merriam.webster.com).There are people who are charitable or use their connection to help those members of the great unwashed.

When I was riding a commercial van in 2019 from my former home town M’lang, Cotabato to Davao City for my flight going to Manila, I was seated with Medical Doctor Cecile Rodrigo Roldan who just won as the No.1 elected member of the rustic town’s legislative body.

“Pila gastos mo sa vote buying? (How much you spent in buying votes?),” I, as a meticulos political spectator in Pangasinan election, was too frank in my Ilonggo query to the beauteous Doc Cecile with the damn the torpedo question.

She told me she did not even spend a cent to be whisked- in to the number one post among the eight regular elective members of the SB of the first class town.

“Wow, how you did it?”

“I told the voters in every stump of the 37 villages that they know already how I helped them. They did not spend a dime whenever they come to our hospital (she and her husband Rene’s owned hospital the biggest in the municipality- Author) for consultation. Even I lose or win in this election “padayon gihapon and serbisyo Roldan sa inyo (even I lose or win in this poll our selfless service to the people will continue),” she narrated to me in that almost three hours trip. I could collaborate what she told me how other politikos done it without resorting to vote buying.

In the late 1990s I have a classmate in the College of Law in the University of Pangasinan named Ferdinand Galang, Jr. He told me his father had access with politicians and doctors in the provincial and regional hospitals based in Pangasinan where he brought poor sick people from Calasiao town (my missus Miles’ municipality) to be treated gratis (free) in those health institutions. He had done this herculean job for them for decades. When he ran for councilorship he did not spend a cent but still win with overwhelming votes.

When he died, the son Ferdie – who emulated how his father interceded for the medical needs of his constituents – ran for the SB post and the Vice Mayorship and won them all. Unfortunately, he drank a poison and died in his home in April 1, 2017. Personal problem, eh, but that was another story.

“Ang pagtulong sa mga indigents malaking bagay Sir. Pag natulongan mo na ang isang miyembro ng family, buong pamilya o angkan iboboto ka na nila (It’s a big deal when you helped a poor man, Sir. His family and tribe are already indebted to you thus they will vote for you),” Binmaley Vice Mayor Edgar C. Mamenta who was a former driver and trusted man of Doctor Francisco “Pinggoy” Duque III, told me when I dropped by at his office several years ago. Duque, who is now the Secretary of Health, was the Dean of the College of Medicine in the 1990s of the family’s owned Lyceum Northwestern University in Dagupan City while I was an Associate Professor of this school for a decade mentoring students with my favorite subjects’ Political Science and Economics.

When Duque became PhilHealth Chairman and Secretary of Health under then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Mamenta stocks spiked. Just like Galang, he brought town folks of Binmaley to the provincial and regional hospital of the province and have them treated despite their bills that run to hundred thousand of pesos. Mamenta assured them not to worry because the government – through his clouts with the power-that-be - would shoulder for them.

“Wala kayong babayaran ako ang bahala,” a confident Mamenta – whose younger brother work at the Region – 1 Medical Center in Dagupan City - told me that Secretary Duque until now is all-out support to his sibling’s free service to the poor folks of the town.

Because of his popularity, Mamenta now gears to run for the mayorship of the 60,550 registered voters town in the May 9, 2022 election against the son of the outgoing hizzoner of the town Sam Rosario.

Despite selfless folks like Roldan, the Galangs, and Mamenta, in general Philippine election is about huge financial spending where the bulk are intended primordially on vote buying. As what old folks would quip then: No Money No Honey. Those who have the golds win in this electoral democratic practice bequeathed to us by the Americans when they colonized our country in 1898.

Show Me the Money, another phrase we Flips, er, Pinoys usually see on tees and quotes on novel and even in the social media.

Showing of the dough as election periods progress continues to worsen. This malpractice happens because of the growing poverty of the majority of the vulnerable Filipinos.

READ MY OTHER BLOG/COLUMN:

Voters Abuse Mayor’s Kindness As Election Nears

(You can read my selected columns at
mortzortigoza.blogspot.com and articles at Pangasinan News Aro. You can send comments too at totomortz@yahoo.com)