“I was a poor kid, vote for me!”

Since when did going through poverty become a qualification – or a plus factor – for becoming a president? I mean I just don’t get it. If you do, please, humor me.

All of a sudden, almost every politician is claiming to have risen from poverty. Jojo Binay has this anecdotal campaign ad that shows him as a kid, choosing to stay in the farm when all of his friends are enjoying themselves. Villar’s campaign jingle boasts that he’s the true son of poverty. At least Erap is consistently telling off his jab of being the masses’ champion. Okay, granted that you really were once poor, does that make you a better leader?

Of all these political ads that just makes me wince in disagreement, I hate Villar’s the most. Sorry, I don’t hate it – I abhor it! It’s just a load of crap. Yeah, include all of his ads. And for that matter, include all these traditional politician’s ads; spreading false hopes without really telling how they will be able to do these things they promise. If you look at them closely, the ads only give you one thing: hope – false hope.

So how do you hope the right way? I take it it’s best to hope this way: look at your politician’s track record, and “hope” that what he has done will reflect what he is capable to do. What has he done? What is he doing? Plans are nothing if you don’t see that he or she doesn’t have the ability to put things into perspective and into action. This is where I liked Richard Gordon’s ads. They are simple, direct to the point, and tell how he has done things in the past. And no, he’s not kidding, too. If you trace back, you’ll be able to verify that everything he boasts about is true. So that’s a start. But a political campaign shouldn’t stop there. I think these politicians ought to show us how exactly they will lead this country out of the mire. And this is why I was flabbergasted by Noynoy’s jaw-dropping ad.

At first, I thought it’s going to be another motherhood statement commercial. Come on, every Filipino is hoping for the best. The wishes that most politicians want and express in their ads are also what everyone wants. It’s a no-brainer! They didn’t have to reiterate these things. Instead, they should have been talking about how exactly they want these done. Why is no one doing that? Because it’s simply hard, and finally, boring. Who would dare run a political ad that would tell us how exactly he would implement changes in the government? Roco did it before, telling through ads his concepts, even of his famed “sunshine principle” aimed at thwarting corruption once and for all. And it didn’t work. People wanted drama. The more drama, the better your chances have.

It’s just so disheartening that after years of being a democratic country and having luckily exercise our right to suffrage almost at tik-tok precision, we’re still being drawn to campaign ads that are nothing more but empty. If I’m to choose the best political ad thus far, Noynoy’s pledge is my pick. Okay, it’s still dashed with hopeful motherhood statements here and there, but promising on national television to not steal, that, for me, is a gutsy, all balls, show stealer. So maybe it was crafted by some ad great that was paid to think for Noynoy and his campaign, but still, having the guts to tell that, with that conviction – and even promising to the grave of your mother and father (bearing in mind too who they are to Philippine history) – is sheer guts.

I’d take that anytime versus Villar’s boasting that he has tried to swim an ocean of garbage. Because if that were a qualification, hell, let’s get our next president from Payatas.