Excerpt from: http://enuhski.tumblr.com/post/547517406/gilbert-teodoro-is-my-president
Moral Force
Who has the monopoly of moral force and integrity, pray tell? Noynoy Aquino? Villar and his ads? Because I am writing about Gibo, I will not go into the gory details of Hacienda Luisita or the C-5 controversy, and all the other sensationalized demolition jobs that have little relevance to my concerns as a voter. Morality/integrity is not a birthright you can claim, it can’t be glossed over with ads and it’s easier said than lived.
We have other candidates running on integrity and the promise of a clean administration. We have Bro. Eddie - a religious leader, upstart JC De Los Reyes, we have Richard Gordon and we have Gibo. I’d count Jamby, too, if I were sure she was serious about running.
Who commands respect even from opposing camps and various personalities? Gibo.
I’d like to add that if anyone has the capacity and will to implement CARP with respect to Luisita, then Gibo would be in the best position. He has the strength and will to do it, he is in a unique position as well, being a Cojuangco. Just read this for Luisita issues and watch videos to know more about it. He may be a Cojuangco, yes, but he’s on the other side of the fence, the one that doesn’t depend on Luisita. Now, as to what he will do with his own uncle’s numerous legal battles as a former Marcos crony, well, he is bound by his duties as former lawyer of Danding to act on it personally.
As for GMA and even his political opponents, he has stressed many times that as President, he will not engage in the politics of vengeance and he will not interfere in any way (for or against) in the prosecution of PGMA, among others. In other words, he will not exacerbate any further the problems with an already politicized justice system. I will infer that he will do his part in ensuring the independence and integrity of the courts as well, corollary to his commitment.
If we go by his untarnished record of public service, we can thank his father for setting a good example. We can also rely on Gibo’s word on this - he has not given us reason not to, in any case. Gibo’s conduct of the campaign is also a good indication of his moral bearings.
Gibo’s positive campaign draws on the force of the formidable party machinery but the truly amazing phenomenon people should be aware of is the massive and organized youth-led national volunteer movement that tirelessly campaigns for him. More importantly, while media outfits trumpeted the collapse of the Lakas-Kampi merger, it was the show of support of Green Team movements scattered all over the country that countered these sensationalized defections.
Whether or not it was a sound idea, politically, for Gibo to resign as party chairman, his move certainly purged the party of opportunists and trapos (Chavit, Salceda, among others) who will stab him in the back anyway. The defectors have been welcomed with open arms by the other parties desperate for votes. These volunteers rallied behind Gibo and in a superior show of strength, demonstrated that Gibo is truly the people’s candidate. He leads by example; his volunteers are constrained to follow and resist mudslinging just to get ahead. Palabra de honor (word of honor) and delicadeza are shockingly new words in our political vocabulary but Gibo and the public are holding fellow politicians accountable for their actions. Instead of saying - “It’s acceptable, it’s politics,” people have begun to question the motives behind defections, the principles (or lack thereof) of politicians seeking an easy and convenient win by jumping on the bandwagon. Gibo is walking the talk, and at least he can proceed with the campaign without looking over his shoulder, waiting for the next betrayal.
He has never resorted to gimmickry to draw attention to himself. No celebrities, no patronizing ads or slogans to pander to the masses. He assumes that every Filipino is an intelligent voter who will vote according to reason, platforms and not propaganda. On his part, he is certainly doing his best to engage on issues, platforms and advocacies. He has not resorted to mudslinging - and above all, you may not like him for sticking to his party when he could easily win support just by mouthing anti-GMA slogans but you’ll have to admire his loyalty. Likewise, he does not complain if media reports are biased against him, if there are biased moderators in debates, if he is only given a short period of time to talk about his views and stance on issues. He doesn’t mince words or conceal his feelings about the likes of Nograles.
He is firm on his commitment to a clean campaign, and he is even more firm about his commitment to forging national unity. I believe him.