The Switch Game

Candidates still have until this evening to withdraw or substitute for others. So the Dutertes still have a few more hours to play the Switch Game.

As of last night, it looked like the Duterte versus Daughterte fight would push through in the race for vice president. Senate President Tito Sotto, who topped the latest reputable survey for the VP race, must be delighted. But President Duterte will still have until election day to withdraw from the race.

The Commission on Elections has said the Switch Game has been quite common in the local races. But the switching for national posts this year, according to Comelec officials, has been unprecedented.

In fact the substitution has been prevalent only within the administration camp. Senators Manny Pacquiao and Panfilo Lacson (with running mate Tito Sen) ignored warnings about the fate of early birds in election races and declared their intent to run long before the period for the filing of certificates of candidacy. And so far they have stayed the course.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno and running mate Willie Ong followed shortly, and they are already on the campaign trail.

Vice President Leni Robredo took time to make up her mind, but against the backdrop of the administration’s Switch Game, she is coming off resolute, together with her running mate Sen. Kiko Pangilinan.

At least the dictator’s son, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., doesn’t play the Switch Game either.

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There are reports of efforts to reunite the two warring PDP-Laban factions, with Pacquiao to spring the “last surprise” in the candidacies, according to Sara Duterte-Carpio’s ally, Albay Rep. Joey Salceda. This fueled speculation that Pacquiao would agree to slide down to the VP race and his PDP-Laban faction would support Inday Sara for president.

But Salceda also previously expressed certainty that Inday Sara would run for president. Maybe Salceda’s scenario would still materialize today.

Seeing the chaos in the administration camp, however, why would Pacquiao slide down to the VP race?

Last Saturday the PDP-Laban’s other faction even lost both its standard bearer and his running mate. Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, who had strenuously denied being a placeholder for anyone, withdrew his presidential bid.

Sen. Bong Go, meanwhile, went back on his repeated avowals of disinterest in the presidency, and filed his candidacy for president, as a substitute – not for his party mate Bato dela Rosa under the PDP-Laban, but for Grepor Butch Belgica of the Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan. (Never heard? Same here.) It’s unclear if Go has joined the PDDS.

Is the Bong versus Bongbong fight for real? President Duterte will reportedly explain today why he can’t support Marcos as his successor.

The administration’s Switch Game is no longer looking like a strategically well planned confuse-the-enemy tactic. It’s just coming off confused, plain and simple.

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Inevitably, people are likening the confusion to the disorganized pandemic response. The battle against COVID has been a long, unfocused lurch, punctuated with policy flip-flops sometimes within one day.

If the denizens of Malacañang and their extended families can’t even make up their minds on which positions they want to aim for in the 2022 race, how can you expect proper direction in the COVID response, or vision for post-pandemic recovery?

The only clear picture that has emerged in the Switch Game that the administration is playing in the twilight of the Duterte presidency is that the clan is hoping to achieve nationwide what it has done in Davao City – an uninterrupted grip on power, with family members (plus the adopted) simply switching all the key positions.

Duterte had the same idea when he promised to eradicate the drug menace within six months of assuming the presidency. Kill enough suspects to put the fear of Duterte if not God into the hearts of the remaining drug dealers and dopeheads, and everything will fall into place. It worked for Davao; it should work for the entire country.

A year, two years, and now nearly six years later, Duterte himself admits that the archipelago is not Davao, and what worked for his home city has not worked nationwide.

There are even questions on how much the take-no-prisoners approach has worked in Davao, following the arrest of the city’s chief information officer (now sacked), Jefry Tupas, in a drug raid on a beach resort in Mabini town, Davao de Oro.

Mayor Sara sacked Tupas a day after the raid by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, during which illegal drugs valued at P1.5 million were seized. Reports said the raiding team did not include Tupas among the 17 arrested after she reportedly introduced herself as “a staff of Inday Sara.”

People are wondering if the Davao City mayor was truly completely clueless about the company Tupas kept, or if the mayor had simply looked the other way.

As a VP bet, there is less pressure for Inday Sara to be like Caesar’s wife. But Tupas’ case will haunt the mayor’s father, who has made the war on drugs a top priority of his administration – in case he seeks an elective post in 2022.

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As indicated in surveys, the chaotic pandemic response and the Pharmally mess have already weighed on President Duterte’s populist appeal. This Switch Game isn’t doing his family and allies any good either. They call it a pitch for continuity; critics see unabashed greed for power.

The most appalling suggestion from their allies is a term-sharing scheme for the presidency between Marcos and Inday Sara – with the obvious presumption that both are shoo-ins for whatever posts they are seeking.

From what I have gathered, their rivals are shaking their heads in amusement.

Until the candidacies are firmed up, all the switching will be played up prominently in multimedia. This could lead the switchers to think they are controlling the narrative in the 2022 race. Any public titillation over the substitutions, however, has a pretty short shelf life and can quickly turn into exasperation.

Once the candidacies are finalized, people will be looking more closely at the aspirants and what they have to offer.

A downside of being an avid player of the Switch Game is its impact on the credibility of the candidate.

How much can you trust a person who says one thing today and does the opposite the next day? Who flits from one political group to another, without even informing party stalwarts of the move? Can you trust the campaign promises of such a candidate?

The indecision, disorganization, and the word that’s worth less than used toilet paper reflect what can be expected of the person’s governance if elected.