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Gabriel L. Cardinoza
 
Socialite daughter Rachel Arenas may be the most visibly busy congressional hopeful these days more than one year into the 2007 elections. I can only imagine that in a typical work day, she could have five or six speaking engagements that would only afford her to call it a day way past midnight.
 
Serious and determined as she is to get the congressional seat which will be vacated by Rep. Gener Tulagan, the first congressman to complete a three three-year term, her visibility in Pangasinan’s most vote-rich district is her way of introducing herself to the electorate and make known her intentions.
 
From what we have gathered, Rachel and her mother, socialite Baby Arenas, have been distributing financial assistance to every group and individual who come to them, as well as promising a better life for the poor once Rachel is elected. While she wants to project she’s not a trapo, the way she runs her campaign now and the way she deals with people are no different from the traditional politicians’ way of doing it. She’s so young and intelligent and yet so trapo.

Whether she will be able to eventually win the hearts and minds of the people of the third district and make them vote for her next year is, of course, another story. Money (and lots of it) is a very important factor in an election but it does not guarantee victory. We have seen this in Binmaley in 2004 when a mayoralty candidate is said to have spent US$1 million but ended up being beaten black and blue by her less wealthy opponent.
 
Rachel’s announcement last December that she was joining the third district politics was met with surprise more than applause. Truth is, she was not seen as a savior or someone who will really alleviate the plight of the poor in the district. She is seen as another politician, period. She can only hope that his perception will change until before the people go to the polling places next year. Otherwise, she will just be another loser.
 
Rachel’s campaigners should also realize that arriving in a town in time for an election is not such a good time. If you listen well enough, you hear that people are now saying that you have come home to Malasiqui just because you want to get elected and when you get that you wanted, you will just leave them. And you can’t blame them because these may have been what they have seen in the past. Convincing the people of the sincerity of your intentions is easier said than done.
 
There is also now a growing perception that Rachel is running with the blessings of FVR. If you think this is good for you, think again. During his term, the long stretch of the Malasiqui-Bayambang road was called an abortion road because its condition was so bad a pregnant woman would give birth if she rides on a mini-bus to Dagupan. This was the same with the Malasiqui-Villasis road. The people had hoped that FVR would be coming to the rescue by ordering the DPWH to fix the roads.
 
But it never came. Instead, FVR poured infrastructure projects in the 6th and 1st districts, where his nephews, then Rep. Ranjit Shahani and Rep. (now Mayor) Nani Braganza were congressmen.
 
As it stands today, Rachel’s campaigning may have literally taken her places and enabled her to see the abject poverty that is still prevalent in the countryside and the enormity of the tasks ahead. But as she said in a press conference, she is “more capable and more intelligent than other people in Congress.” So, when she gets elected, she should be able to easily wipe out poverty and catapult the third district into a most progressive metropolis in the country.
 
We hope.

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About a week ago, I received the following letter in my e-mail: 
 
Dear Benefactor Of 2006 Masonry Grant,

John C. Gerspach,
Secretary Freemason Society of Holdenhurst Road, Bournemouth .
 
Of course, this is just one of those hoaxes being circulated in the e-mails. No different from the text scam we have here. In fact this is not the first time I received this kind of e-mail. I’ve got several lotto winning notifications before. But this is the first time I am receiving supposedly from the Freemasons.
 
Well, any violent reactions out there?