By Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–Diosdado Macapagal spent his vice presidency campaigning non-stop, because President Carlos P. Garcia wouldn’t give him a job. Back then, the basic unit of our government was the barrio, and Macapagal never hesitated to boast that he had visited nearly every barrio to shake hands with nearly every voter. To be sure, obsessive attention to voters, in retail and wholesale terms, is the mark of any successful politician. But Macapagal’s personal touch proved incapable of overcoming the challenge mounted by Ferdinand E. Marcos, who believed above all else in the ability of political machinery to overcome all odds.

Marcos renamed the barrio the “barangay,” and this latter-day rajah ensured that the barrio captain of old would become the barangay chairman of today, the petty “datu” on whom money is periodically showered by Malacañang. Marcos distrusted the traditional party machines and wanted to build personal ties between his supreme chieftainship, and the village chiefs he created and made dependent on his good graces.

It is no coincidence, then, that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo governs with a combination of her father’s retail obsession and Marcos’ wholesale penchant for bribing all opposition into submission. She roams the country with her father’s zeal and holds cash buffets in Malacañang in a truly Marcosian manner. At the apex of the patronage pyramid, she knows as well as her legionaries in the House of Representatives do, that the bedrock of their shared political machinery are barangay officials.

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By Joey A. Gabieta, Edwin Fernandez, Charlie Señase
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–Two elected village chiefs were killed in separate incidents hours after voting ended in Monday’s barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) elections, according to reports culled by INQUIRER.net.

The latest reports have increased the number of cases of election-related violence to 50, police said.

A Philippine Daily Inquirer report from Shariff Kabunsuan said that in Sultan Kudarat, Samsodin Lumbos, a newly proclaimed village chief of Balut, was shot to death by unidentified suspects late Monday.

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By Veronica Uy, Thea Alberto
INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines–Despite several incidents of election-related violence and failure of elections in some areas, the barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) elections were generally peaceful, poll and police officials said Monday.

Philippine National Police Director General Avelino Razon Jr. said there were no major occurrences recorded in most of the 42,000 villages nationwide, as he called the elections the most peaceful in recent years.

“The 2007 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections will probably go down in history as the most peaceful and widely participated electoral exercise in recent years,” said Razon.

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By Thea Alberto
INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines–At least 43 cases of election-related violent incidents were listed by the Philippine National Police, with at least 23 persons killed and 20 others wounded as of 9 a.m. Monday.

The updated tally showed that five of those killed were candidates for the village chief post while two were running as village councilors. Seven of those killed were incumbent village officials, according to the tally.

Meanwhile, four of those wounded were village chief candidates.

Chief Superintendent Silverio Alarcio, head of the Directorate for Operations, said this year’s village elections were less violent compared to the one in 2002, when his office listed a total of 159 cases.

Alarcio added however that the present number might still increase.

“This is because 30 percent of the cases in the 2002 elections happened on Election Day itself,” said Alarcio.

By Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–A Catholic prelate has appealed for more active participation in the upcoming barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataang (youth council) elections on October 29 as candidates’ campaigning ends Saturday.

In a statement, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president Angel Lagdameo said that if the faithful could take interest in how their churches or parishes operate, they should similarly give the same attention to their villages.

Lagdameo has also asked the faithful to consciously participate in the affairs of the villages since it serves as a breeding ground for future leaders.

He stressed that the people should guard against partisanship in the elections to protect the village’s role in providing for the common good. Beverly Natividad

By Nestor P. Burgos Jr.
Inquirer

ILOILO CITY, Philippines–An outgoing Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chair was shot dead in her home in Lambunao town, Iloilo province, Tuesday evening, the first violent incident in the Visayas involving a youth council candidate less than a week before the barangay (village) and SK elections.

Bona Marie Catedral, 22, died from a gunshot wound in the left chest after she was shot at close range at around 6:30 p.m. at her family’s residence in Barangay Jayubo, 15 kilometers from the town proper. Lambunao is around 48 kilometers north of Iloilo City.

The victim is the fourth of five children of Lambunao Vice Mayor Pancho Catedral. Her remains were brought to the Solano Funeral Homes in Lambunao.

Investigators are still verifying reports that an unidentified gunman approached and shot the victim as she was about to close a window of their house.

Senior Inspector Elmer Armada, Lambunao police chief, said they were still investigating the circumstances of the shooting.

Armada would not confirm if politics was being eyed as angle in the shooting. He also refused to reveal the probable motives of the crime saying they were still in the early stage of their investigation.

By Tina Santos
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–While anti-government groups are trying to find ways to unseat President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, activist priest Robert Reyes has chosen “exorcism” to “rid the government of evil spirits.“

Reyes, also known as the “running priest” for jogging in support of social causes, performed exorcism rites on Monday in front of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) building in Manila, and also prayed for peaceful and credible barangay (village) elections on October 29.

By Inquirer Northern Luzon Bureau, Southern Luzon Bureau, Central Luzon Desk, Mindanao Bureau

MANILA, Philippines–While the enthusiasm generated by the national elections in May has died down, candidates for the Oct. 29 barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) elections have been trying to perk up the electorate by using time-tested campaign gimmicks.

Some candidates have resorted to merrymaking — complete with Ati-Atihan dancers and motorcades of jeepneys, pedicabs and tricycles — to introduce themselves to voters.

Others opted to conduct an anti-rabies vaccination campaign and free measles immunization for children.

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By DJ Yap
Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines–Candidates running for barangay (village) or Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) posts in Makati City were warned not to violate election laws on the posting of campaign materials, lest they get fined.

The city government of Makati, through its environmental services department, also asked the candidates to minimize the use of campaign posters and to post them only on exterior walls allowed by the Commission on Elections.

“These campaign materials are eyesores and we do not want our city to be littered with them,” city environment department chief Danilo Villas said on Thursday.

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By Inquirer

CABANATUAN CITY–The practice of courting the endorsement of the Iglesia ni Cristo, a religious organization known to practice bloc voting, is not the exclusive domain of candidates for national and local government positions.

In the run up to the Oct. 29 synchronized barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections, some candidates for SK positions have started seeking the endorsement of local INC ministers to push their candidacies.

Early start

A candidate for SK chair in a northern Nueva Ecija city said she went to the office of the local INC minister to seek his help in her candidacy.

She said her father, who knows the minister, accompanied her and together they asked for an endorsement of her candidacy to the young members of the group.

The minister, she said, was non-committal and said he would study her request.

The candidate, a senior high school student who declined to be identified to avoid accusations of early campaigning, said she knew that other candidates in their village, both for the SK and barangay council elections, have already approached the minister to seek his endorsement.

Influence

“I was told that the members of INC deliver solid votes. That was the reason why we approached the minister. His endorsement will be a big help for me since there are many members of his group in our village,” the candidate said.

In Isabela, the police have tightened security preparations for the barangay and SK elections in at least 199 villages where communist rebels are known to be operating.

Senior Supt. Dominador Aquino Jr., Isabela police director, said he has ordered an intensified monitoring of these villages to stop any violent incident in the run up to the elections.

“We have to work on this matter because the police have been [one of the] primary forces against communist rebels,” he said.

Aquino said the villages they are watching are in the towns of Benito Soliven, Echague, Jones, San Mariano and San Agustin. Anselmo Roque, Inquirer Central Luzon, and Villamor Visaya Jr., Inquirer Northern Luzon