Comparison of Presidential styles: Gilbert Teodoro, Richard Gordon, and J.C. de los Reyes

I will talk about three presidential candidates whom I like.  If anyone of them wins, the Philippines has a future.

Gilbert Teodoro

Gilbert Teodoro’s strength is in his academic credentials.  But what I like about him is his emphasis in institution building.  His interest is on making an excellent organization with with well defined roles.  As president, his job is to provide the vision and mission for the country, and to realign the country’s resources and institutions to achieve that goal.  His term as president would be over in six years, but the institutional processes that he will put in place will continue to work long after he is forgotten.  Just like his father.

Teodoro is not a dictator.  His method of problem solving is by consultation and consensus-building.   He is a realistic.  He knows that the government cannot possibly provide for every Filipinos.  He knows the limit of the Philippine Fiscal Budget.  So what he wants to do is to find a way to make the government and the private sector work together.

Richard Gordon

Richard Gordon’s strength is in his capacity to make people volunteer.  This is the essence of a leader: to make people follow you because they believe in you.  Look at what he did to Subic after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo.  He galvanized the people to action and cleaned up the U.S. military bases.  He knows the potential of the bases to attract investments.  What is needed is a leader whom the investors trust to make things happen.  And he provided that leadership.

Gordon’s ads state the facts.  He did not make promises.  He showed his achievements.  The billions of pesos of foreign investment that poured in Subic under his leadership is proof enough.  If he can transform Subic, he can transform Philippines.

The Gordon and Bayani is a good tandem if they both win.  Gordon the Leader.  Bayani the builder.

J. C. de los Reyes

J. C. de los Reyes also has good academic credentials, second perhaps to Gilbert Teodoro.  What I like about J. C. is that he is campaigning not primarily for himself but for the Kapatiran Party.

All the political parties that we have at the moment have no mission and vision to speak of.  They are bunch of politicians who happen to group themselves into a party because of political convenience, just like in prehispanic Philippines.  Raul Manglapus’ Christian Democratic Socialist Movement, which later became NUCD, was formed to to instill the Catholic Church’s social doctrine in the Philippine government.  Then the party affiliated with Lakas and others, and the original mission of the Manglapus was diluted.

The Kapatiran Party is a revival of Raul Manglapus’s original vision.  The Kapatiran’s clear stand against the Reproductive Health Bill shows the unity of the party’s mission and vision.

Archbishops Ramon Arguelles and Vicente Navarra support Ang Kapatiran Party’s presidential candidate J. C. de los Reyes

At least two senior prelates came out in the open Thursday expressing their full support for Ang Kapatiran’s standard bearer John Carlos “JC” De Los Reyes.  Bacolod Bishop Vicente Navarra and Lipa Archbishop said they will firmly stand for what they believe is “right” and “necessary”.

“I guess it’s time for us to come out,” Navarra said. “It’s really a matter of conscience this time. That is what my conscience is telling me so I will stand for what I believe is right.”  The prelate said he is endorsing De Los Reyes and other Ang Kapatiran bets because of their commitment to the Catholic Church’s social teachings.  Navarra said he is engaging in partisan politics this time to be “consistent” with his advocacy for good governance and eradication of graft and corruption.  “They’re the ones with clear sincerity in bringing political change to our country. They also stood up to the principles supported by the Church,” he said.

Arguelles, however, admitted that De Los Reyes’ winnability in the presidential race, as surveys show, is “slim” but said he would still support him.  “There’s no vote that is wasted on a candidate you believe could bring real change, whether he wins or not,” he said.

Source: CBCP News

De los Reyes, Ang Kapatiran’s standard bearer, has expressed elation Thursday after two Catholic bishops endorsed his candidacy.  “In behalf of the party, I am humbled, happy and highly encouraged. This is the best incentive for all of us in Kapatiran to work harder to evangelize and reform politics,” he told the CBCPNews.   De los Reyes said the rare endorsements by the bishops will spur them to work harder in a bid to win the top government posts.  “The bishops’ affirmation of what we in Ang Kapatiran are doing to introduce a prophetic politics of personal and social transformation in our country, in a holistic and integral manner, gives us encouragement to continue fighting the good fight,” he added.

Ang Kapatiran had claimed that their formation was in response to the call of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP-II) for the lay faithful “to participate actively and lead in the renewing of politics in accordance with values of the Good News of Jesus”. (Roy Lagarde/CBCPNews)