Film Star Adds a Twist to Politics--in Philippines

Those convinced that nothing could top California’s chaotic recall last year for sheer electoral zaniness should look west to the Philippines.

With almost three months until the country’s May 10 general election, the presidential race already is one of the region’s more bizarre, and events point to more unexpected twists.

The leading challenger to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s quest to remain in office is 64-year-old movie idol Fernando Poe Jr., better known as FPJ. Extremely popular, he is in some ways a Filipino version of Arnold Schwarzenegger -- except that he’s a high school dropout who freely acknowledges that he has had little interest in politics and has no stated plan to fix the country’s ills. His candidacy is being challenged today in the Supreme Court.

Nonetheless, polls show him holding a lead of about 10 percentage points over the uncharismatic Arroyo, who has failed to turn the country around economically in the three years since she ascended from the vice presidency. She replaced Joseph Estrada, who was chased from office amid accusations of plundering the nation’s treasury.

Other candidates include:

* Former national Police Chief Panfilo Lacson, a strong law-and-order advocate struggling to shake allegations of ties to drug barons and gangland-style executions of criminals.

* Christian faith healer and television evangelist Eduardo Villanueva, known as “Brother Eddie,” whose political rallies take on the flavor of religious revivals.

* A little-known 59-year-old businessman named Eddie Gil, who was disqualified as a nuisance candidate the last time he ran for public office in 2001. Gil recently called on his poli- tical rivals to give up their personal wealth to help ease the country’s budget woes, then declared himself the only one whose donations could make a dent in the deficit.

Already a longshot, Gil’s appeal dimmed further when a series of checks written to cover his initial campaign swing in northern Mindanao bounced.

A sixth candidate, Raul Roco, a former education secretary and leader of the small Democratic Action party, is considered by many to have the best combination of skills and experience to address the country’s formidable problems. But an elitist image and the lack of a large, nationwide political organization make his chances slim, election observers say. He is running third in polls behind Poe and Arroyo.

In an attempt to add some star appeal to her own campaign, Arroyo has selected the country’s most popular newsreader, Noli de Castro, as her running mate. The choice has helped lift Arroyo from fourth to second in the race, analysts believe.

Poe, who frequently played strong-but-silent heroes during his film career, has carried this style into the campaign. His nomination acceptance speech totaled nine words: “I’m accepting the nomination of the coalition for president.” Interviews are infrequent, and his longest campaign speech so far was clocked at 12 minutes.

Asked what he believed to be the most important event in the country’s recent past, Poe told the Australian, a Sydney-based daily newspaper, in December: “That’s tough. I wasn’t aware of what’s really happening.... My younger days were all movies.” In response to a question on what he believed were the biggest problems facing the country, he said: “Breakfast, lunch and dinner” -- in what seemed to be a reference to the nation’s losing battle against poverty.

Still, a highly successful career that includes more than 200 films and countless awards, along with a rags-to-riches life story, a seemingly clean personal life and an aura of no-nonsense honesty have given the political neophyte a popular appeal -- especially among the poor -- unmatched by any of the other candidates.

That he heads a loose-knit yet powerful coalition of political forces that include loyalists of former Presidents Ferdinand Marcos and Estrada merely adds to his strength.

“He’s different, he’s not a politician,” said a Manila meat vender, Olivia de la Cruz, who planned to vote for FPJ. “Maybe that is what our country needs, because we’ve had politicians all these years and look where we are now.”

Although clearly the front-runner, Poe is far from a shoo-in. In fact, the legal challenge to his candidacy could get him banned from the election. That challenge has come to overshadow the campaign, drowning out meaningful debate on crucial issues, including eroding academic skills, declining international competitiveness, rising public debt, endemic poverty and two stubborn, decades-old armed insurgencies.

“It’s now the most critical issue facing the electoral process,” said Jose Leviste, chairman of opinion research group Polistrat International.

The dispute centers on Poe’s citizenship at birth. Was he born Filipino -- and thus eligible to run for the nation’s highest public office? Or was he not, in which case he would be disqualified?

His backers say there is no case. They note that Poe’s father was Filipino and is identified as such on Poe’s birth certificate -- which makes him eligible to run.

“If the case is decided on its legal merits, then I’m sure we’ll win,” said Sixto Brillantes, one of Poe’s lawyers.

But Poe’s citizenship has been challenged by lawyers -- some say acting on behalf of Arroyo -- who say that because his parents were not married at the time of his birth, under Philippine law he assumed the citizenship of his mother -- Bessie Kelley, an American.

The case is scheduled to be argued today before the Supreme Court, with a ruling expected as soon as next week.

By midday, police with water cannons had dispersed hundreds of people who had massed to protest the challenge to Poe’s candidacy.

Arroyo -- who has described her political rival as “Filipino in heart and spirit” but has gone no further -- Wednesday ordered the Philippine National Police on alert in Manila and called the Supreme Court challenge “part of our democratic way of life.”

However the ruling goes, Arroyo could end up the loser, Leviste predicted. If the case is dismissed, he said, Poe is likely to get an injection of new support; if he is barred, Arroyo could be perceived as using dirty tricks to get rid of a powerful opponent.

“For all its faults, this country believes deeply in fair play,” Leviste said. “She’s in a difficult position.”

With more uncertainty looming, some people believe that the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines had the best method for getting the country through the campaign. Wednesday, it issued an oratio imperata, an obligatory prayer, to enlighten the electorate and inspire it with love.