By Ann Corvera
The Philippine Star 12/27/2004
They provided comic relief to a public tired of political bashing. Their quirks entertained some people and annoyed others. Then there were those who made the country proud and offered hope.
Presenting the scene-stealers of 2004:
Who could forget Eddie Gil, the perpetual public office seeker who perpetually gets disqualified for being a nuisance candidate? The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Gil, who made a campaign promise to make every Filipino a millionaire in the last presidential elections, could show no proof that he could launch a nationwide campaign.
Gil’s critics said he made a mockery of the presidential race with his obscure platform of government and out-of-this-world answers to the nation’s woes (he promised to pay the Philippines’ P5-trillion debt — from his own pocket). He later found himself facing estafa charges for issuing bouncing checks.
Throwing a tantrum after he was disqualified, Gil tore a copy of the Comelec ruling to shreds and warned of a "revolution." When it couldn’t really work out in politics for Gil, he found a career in show business, doing cameo roles in soap operas, endorsing products and getting a recording contract that netted a hit single, "Pelukang Itim."
Another "Eddie" had his share of the political limelight, but unlike Gil, evangelist Eddie Villanueva made it till the final count.
"Bro. Eddie," as he is widely known among his Christian flock, is the leader of the Jesus Is Lord Movement, which has a strong three-million following nationwide. His political rallies drew large crowds. In a country where religious conviction is a strong influence, Villanueva banked on righteous governance as his political battlecry, but ended up last in five-cornered presidential race with a mere 1.98 million votes.
Another colorful candidate came charging into the glare of publicity: Elly Pamatong.
Like Gil, he too was a perennially disqualified candidate. The self-styled author (copies of his "Meritocracy," subtitled "A Vision of a New Civilization!" were distributed to newsrooms) cum lawyer handcuffed himself to the gates of the Comelec after his attempt to get a seat in the Senate was foiled.
A month later, Pamatong caused mayhem in the streets by allegedly scattering steel spikes on major roads in Metro Manila in an anti-government protest. The "Spike Man" is facing separate charges of malicious mischief and tumults and other alleged disturbances of public order before various courts.
And just when the public thought the obsolete mode of vote canvassing (by manual count) was going to be boring, enter former Maguindanao congressman Didagen "Digs" Dilangalen, a supporter of the late actor and defeated presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr.
On national television, an irate Dilangalen repeatedly bellowed "Shut up!" — the words contained in a note passed to him from the gallery by a supporter of Mrs. Arroyo — while he was speaking on the floor during the joint congressional canvass last June.
The note came from a woman who was reacting to the lawmaker’s persistent questioning of the rules of canvass, among other issues he raised that delayed the already crawling canvass. The refusal of his colleagues to reprimand the woman triggered Dilangalen’s infamous outburst, done in a heavy southern Filipino accent, that was carried and replayed in news broadcasts.
Enterprising merchants later jumped at the chance to come out with novelty items, including t-shirts immortalizing Dilangalen’s outburst addressed to Deputy Speaker Raul Gonzalez: "Shut up, Mr. Speaker."
Dilangalen has retired from politics after losing as an opposition senatorial candidate.
Another congressman from the South made headlines during the canvassing of votes, albeit in a more amusing fashion.
Bored out of his wits for having only to watch the proceedings, Compostela Valley Rep. Manuel Zamora, more popularly known as "Way Kurat," offered to physically carry the ballot boxes himself to the table in the center of the session hall from the rear.
Zamora said he was "too sleepy" and it would help him wake up if he was allowed to haul the metal boxes.
An amused Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. allowed Zamora to do so but an ever alert Dilangalen interrupted by asking who will be Way Kurat’s counterpart in the Senate. Before it could spark another debate, De Venecia cut Dilangalen short by saying: "He (Zamora) decided to carry the burden of the Senate." Not So Peculiar
Meanwhile, politicians and wannabes were not the only ones who grabbed the limelight in 2004, and not in a peculiar way.
These scene-stealers got the world looking.
Topping that list is Manny Pacquiao, the consensus world featherweight champion, who slugged it out with Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez to a thrilling split draw last May. A rematch is in the works.
Pacquiao, 25, revived the nation’s pride in the boxing arena and just recently, he showed his championship form to thousands of Filipinos as he demolished Fahsan 3-K Battery of Thailand in the "Yanig Sa Taguig" match at the Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.
While Pacquiao powered his way through the global stage, a Hawaiian teen with Filipino roots used her charm.
Filipinos from all over the globe cheered as the rest of the world turned their eye on 17-year-old Jasmine Trias, who made it to the final three of the hit television show "American Idol."
Though she was voted off in the title fight in May, Trias nonetheless received a hero’s welcome when she visited the country to promote products left and right. Her shot to fame earned Trias a private audience with Mrs. Arroyo.
Fellow Fil-Am Camille Velasco was also a contestant in the "American Idol" but was booted out of the race in April.
In the military scene, another Fil-Am made the nation proud when he spoke of the truth about soldiers’ abuse of Iraqi prisoners last May.
Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba, a two-star general in the United States army, spelled out the abuse in his report that sparked worldwide outrage over the treatment of Iraqi inmates at Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad.
Taguba, 53, earned praises from US senators investigating the issue. Bottomline, he said, he had to "follow his conscience and do what is morally right."
Proud of his Filipino heritage, Taguba said in an interview: "I take it with great pride that we are able to assimilate ourselves into the American society."
"We have shown we can contribute to society, (and) at the same time preserve our Filipino-American heritage and culture," he said.
And last, but certainly not the least are two unlikely scene-stealers who united the nation in prayer as they amazed doctors by enduring a delicate surgery for conjoined twins.
Two-year-old twins Carl and Clarence Aguirre were joined at the tops of their heads until a 17-hour final operation at a New York hospital separated them on Aug. 4.
Recovery for the boys came at lighting speed that awed doctors closely monitoring the twins’ condition. In a revolutionary new process, Carl and Clarence went through four major operations conducted over 11 months that began October 2003.
The boys and their mother, Arlene Aguirre, have been in New York since September of the same year.
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