The huge throng, made up largely of women clad mostly in flaring orange, exchanged “Happy Valentine” greetings as they waited for the program to open. On stage were a highly popular evangelist, who also acted as the emcee, and his guests, including two larger-than-life public figures.
Rising from his seat, the emcee strode toward the microphone to introduce his very special guest. “I want to introduce to you our guest who remembered us and who is with us in celebrating Valentine’s,” he intoned. “He is a man who has a heart for OFWs [Overseas Filipino workers], so he remembered to be with us.”
The crowd broke into a long and loud applause. When the frenzy settled down, the speaker continued: “Say money. Who wants money? OK, I have good news for you. The Lord said, ‘Don’t worry about Manny. He can take care of himself’.” Another applause erupted.
The occasion was a prayer rally of the world-wide religious group, the El Shaddai, on Chatter Road in the central district of Hong Kong. The emcee was the charismatic El Shaddai leader, Bro. Mike Velarde. And his special guest was Sen. Manny Villar, Nacionalista Party president and presidential standard-bearer, who came with his wife, Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar and his running mate, Sen. Loren Legarda.
It was the first overseas meeting of El Shaddai with thousands of cheering OFWs affiliated with the religious organization. Abelina Soliman, who works in Hong Kong, said she and other members of her group wore orange to show support for Villar.
Villar was the only candidate from among the 10 presidential contenders who was invited by Velarde to the prayer rally. Many observers see this as an indication of the spiritual leader’s virtual endorsement of the NP standard-bearer in the May 10 presidential election.
Of the presidential rivals, Liberal Party standard-bearer Noynoy Aquino and Villar were placed in poll surveys in a statistical tie. Former President Joseph “Erap“ Estrada came in third and Lakas-Kampi candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro was far behind in fourth place. They were followed by Bro. Eddie Villanueva and Sen. Richard Gordon farther way behind.
The surveys showed that Noy-noy, who previously was ahead by a mile, was losing ground while Villar was steadily going up. If Villar can keep his momentum, there is danger that Noynoy could lose his lead and Villar might end as the front-runner.
One battle area where Villar could convincingly topple Noynoy is in the votes of the overseas Filipino workers.
I have always maintained that the OFWs constitute a large voting constituency that cannot be ignored by the 10 presidential candidates and their tickets. While there are only about 400,000 registered voters from among the more than eight million OFWs, their strength comes from the so-called “captive” or “command” votes held by their voting relatives.
If each of their families has at least one voter, that will translate into eight million votes which the OFWs, as the family breadwinners, can deliver to their chosen presidential candidate. That is a constituency as rich as, if not richer than, some religious groups traditionally courted by candidates every election.
Villar and Legarda appear to have the closest links with OFWs in terms of their moral and material support for distressed workers. There are records to show that the two have figured prominently in the repatriation of stranded OFWs and in giving other forms of aid to those in legal and physical distress.
Villar’s party has allied with the Makabayan alliance, which has a strong presence in Hong Kong. During his brief stay in the former Crown Colony, he met with the militant group Migrante before attending the El Shaddai affair.
Migrante said Hong Kong has one of the highest number of registered voters and had the highest voter turnout in the 2004 and 2007 national polls.
Another drawing card of the Villar-Legarda tandem in winning the OFW vote is the presence in the NP senatorial slate of Susan “Toots” Ople, former labor undersecretary and daughter of the late statesman Blas F. Ople, acknowledged “father of overseas employment.”
Toots Ople had been endorsed by 31 labor unions and organizations, led by the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), the Philippine Transport General Workers Organization (PTGWO), and the Partidong Pandaigdigang Pilipino (PPP), representing the OFWs, during the launching of the Maka-Manggagawa Movement (MMM) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, sometime in October.
She said Villar and Legarda were very supportive of her legislative agenda for the welfare and protection of workers’ rights if she wins as senator.
Among her major legislative proposals were the complete elimination of the labor-only contracting system which has deprived thousands of workers, especially in the hotel industry, of their right to attain permanent status as workers. Another is her pet measure that would give more teeth to the drive against human trafficking.
Another advantage of the Villar-Legarda ticket is its eclectic composition, sectorally and regionally. It has the potential of drawing votes from the so-called “solid North” because of its senatorial candidates Bongbong Marcos, who comes from Ilocos Norte.
Legarda, who has some Visayan roots because of her mother, and Ramon Mitra of Palawan can help generate support from Visayan voters. Senatorial bets Adel Tamano and Gwendolyn Pimentel, both from Mindanao, can help deliver votes from that region.
Ople, who is closely identified with both local and overseas workers, has the capability of delivering the OFW vote. Guest senatorial candidates Satur Ocampo and Lisa Maza can help draw votes from the militant left.
What presidential ticket is likely to win the OFW vote? It appears that the Villar ticket is closer to the OFWs than any of the other presidential tickets. –ALFREDO G. ROSARIO, Manila Times
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