Telltales, tittle-tattles

JUST LIKE the night at its darkest just before the break of dawn, rumors and speculations are at their wildest just before the filing of the certificates of candidacy in coming elections.

October filing for 2019 but a month away, the game of runs, hops, skips, and jumps gets the best in the local political scene. This goes without saying that there indeed are the already announced candidacies, though to be yet “officialized” with their stamping at the Comelec.

Like Angeles City councilor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin Jr. this Wednesday declaring his run for the mayorship at the Talk Widus forum of the Pampanga Press Club.

Even earlier, much earlier, was Clark International Airport Corp. president-CEO Alexander S. Cauguiran announcing his own Rubicon crossing to get to city hall.

His followers have since intensified their social media campaign with slogans and posters – AC4AC, Alex is my next…etc., even as Cauguiran goes on with his now institutionalized “pagpag and bonding” barangay sorties.

Will Alvaro run for AC mayor? Asked our previous issue’s frontpage story of former city alderman now business mogul Dr. Irineo “Bong” Alvaro. The answers were more-here-than-there. Yeah, after the very successful IBA – as much for Inter-Barangay Amateur, as for his initials – basketball league, little, if any, politically-driven endeavors were heard of Alvaro. On the contrary, the business empire he lords over continues to spread, with a venture in Dubai being the most recent.

Let it Be, complete with a throw pillow bearing the moptop images of the Fab Four cradled by a beaming Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan sandwiched between son councilor Edu Pamintuan and Vice Mayor Bryan Matthew Nepomuceno uploaded on the mayor’s Facebook page and enthusiastically shared by his followers made as direct a declaration as an official announcement – Nepomuceno for mayor, Pamintuan his vice. Immediately ensued barangay day services of the city government with the highest visibility and maximum exposure for the chosen two.

While the vice mayoralty pool has thus far only Pamintuan Junior, it is furthest from being a monopolistic exclusivity. Just waiting to dive in are councilors Alfie Bonifacio, Jericho Aguas, even Jay Sangil, who, incidentally, are all losers in the city vice mayoralty races. Their common nemesis, former Vice Mayor Vicky Vega-Cabigting always makes a winnable probability.  Also, there’s former multi-term, beauty pageant multi-titlist, multi-talented Maricel “Marang” Morales -- a most lovely, not to say highly desirable, prospect for vice. The ladies are said to be in the Lazatin abbreviated list. 

It is not In Angeles City though, but in the City of San Fernando that Woman Power is poised to impact most in 2019.

That councilor Angie Hizon will run for vice mayor is already a given, right after the last elections.

What is news is that Vilma Caluag, wife of the Melchor, will give sitting Mayor Edwin Santiago a run for his money – more literally now than metaphorically. Enormous campaign war chests the issue here.     

Fresh from her conquest of the Association of Barangay Captains, thereby bestowing her a seat at the city council, Caluag’s pink posters with individual village chiefs have become ubiquitous in the more rural areas of the capital.

With the greatly missed former three-term mayor, former multi-term congressman Oscar Samson Rodriguez bruited about as her prime mover, Caluag at this early is primed as llamado in the mayoralty derby. 

Crises are set to strike Mabalacat City. The pun is much too much to resist, corn as it is.

Mayor Crisostomo Garbo is set to prove he can win an election outside the ambit of an electoral protest. Vice Mayor Christian Halili is as set to disprove him. Hopefully, these two “Crises” remain but in name and not mean the infliction of devastation to the once dubbed “Makati of the North.”

Even more worth watching here is once eternal mayor Marino “Boking” Morales already in the hustings for vice. One for Ripley’s really. Morales’ not-yet-announced-but-already-doing-the-rounds rival none other than his nephew – councilor Gerald Guttrie P. Aquino.

What else is new with Morales? Family feud redux. Morales once had his own daughter Marjorie, now ABC president of Mabalacat City, as rival for the mayorship. So, it’s back to his campaign tack “Respect your elders” for Boking, eh.

In the first district, graduating Angeles City Mayor Ed Pamintuan has made public his intention to contest the congressional seat getting an instant retort from national team coach Joseller “Yeng” Guiao that he shall retake his former post, no matter who shall oppose him.

The best possible scenario for the re-election of incumbent Rep. Carmelo “Jonjon” Lazatin II is a three-cornered fight with both Guiao and Pamintuan, the two virtually having the same electoral resources – from voters’ pool to campaign patrons.

Only last Monday, somebody from the rarefied heights of Olympus whispered to this mortal that the gods have spoken through the Delphic oracle: Pamintuan will not run.

Tattle for now, or telltale? Can’t wait for October.