Part 2 of a two-part portrait of the administration party standard-bearer What's keeping Gilberto Teodoro Jr. from surging to the top, when he seems to have it all?
Gibo Teodoro burned some bridges when he switched political parties. GMANews.TV
A Harvard-educated bar topnotcher, Gibo was elected for three consecutive terms in Congress before his appointment as the youngest person ever to lead the country’s defense department at age 43. He is a scion of the powerful Cojuangco clan, and is married to Tarlac Rep. Monica Louise "Nikki" Prieto-Teodoro, a commercial model-turned-politician who also hails from a wealthy and influential family. Last November, nearly 3,000 members of the country's ruling party cheered an exuberant Gibo as he laid out his plans for the Philippines in his strong, clear voice. With green streamers and balloons all around them, the national and local politicians attending the Lakas-Kampi-CMD’s national convention pledged their allegiance to Gibo, their intelligent and articulate champion for the May 2010 elections. Many things have changed for Teodoro since then. He has faced a slew of defections from his party following his resignation as its chairman, purportedly to focus on his own campaign. House Speaker Prospero Nograles, one of his most ardent supporters, made a turnaround and said it was a "mistake" to choose him in the first place. He accused Gibo of abandoning his party-mates at the "most crucial hour" and noted that despite his
“galing at talino," Gibo is lagging in most presidential preference polls.
It may have been a blessing that the defense post bode well for Teodoro, placed there in his element before he ran for the presidency. Before then, a review of his political history shows that the brainy lawyer made key moves that may have spoiled rather than propped up his chances of capturing --and keeping-- the trust of his supporters and the general public. In his three terms in Congress, Teodoro made glaring miscalculations that one veteran journalist describes as “autistic political decisions": first, he joined a move to impeach a popular Supreme Court chief justice; and second, he was among those pushing for a constitutional assembly in yet another attempt to keep the President in power. These foreshadowed other political blunders that reveal what could be a shortage of street smarts in someone reputed to be the most intellectual among the presidential candidates.
No success with Charter Change Prior to his appointment to the Defense department in August 2007, Teodoro represented Tarlac’s first district for nine years. The district covers 10 municipalities including Paniqui town, where his branch of the
Cojuangco clan traces its roots. During his stint, Teodoro displayed a bias for justice and security issues. Aside from legislation renaming streets or establishing buildings in his district, Teodoro principally authored and co-authored several bills on defense and justice. He principally authored a bill prohibiting the public display of persons arrested, accused, or under custodial investigation "in a degrading manner." Other measures he authored sought to authorize the Bureau of Corrections to institute a rehabilitation program for prisoners, and to make the Public Attorney’s Office independent from the Department of Justice. During his last term, Teodoro co-authored Republic Act 9346, which effectively abolished the death penalty. Teodoro was also interested in taxation. He filed proposals to rationalize the tax scheme for manufacturers, provide an alternative mode of tax payment by corporations, and provide for the regulation and organization of investment companies. None of these bills were passed into law. Most notably, however, Teodoro supported proposals pushing for the revision of the 1987 Constitution, none of them successful. In the 11th Congress, he filed a bill urging then President Joseph Estrada to create a commission to study the need for Charter change. In the 12th Congress, he filed a joint resolution directing the Commission on Elections to conduct a referendum simultaneous with the barangay elections to get the people’s sentiments on Charter change proposals. In 2006, back when Pangasinan Rep. Jose de Venecia Jr. was still one of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's staunchest allies, Teodoro was part of a working group tasked to finalize proposed amendments to the Charter. To this day, Teodoro is still
in favor of amending the 1987 Constitution, as long as it is done after the May 2010 elections through a constitutional convention. According to him, among the provisions that should be amended are those concerning autonomous regions and foreign ownership of land and corporations.
Impeaching the Chief Justice Aside from Charter change, another generally unpopular move that Teodoro supported was the impeachment complaint filed against then Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. in October 2003. Along with his party-mate, first-termer Camarines Sur Rep. Felix William “Wimpy" Fuentebella, Teodoro filed the impeachment complaint that was endorsed by nearly one-third of the members of the House, many of them from his party, the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC). At the time, Teodoro was known to keep a relatively low profile, choosing not to hog the spotlight in House deliberations, but he was no insignificant political player. He was the leader of the House bloc of the NPC, the political party founded by his uncle, the powerful businessman and former Marcos crony Eduardo “Danding" Cojuangco Jr. Said to be Cojuangco’s favorite nephew—some call him
Danding’s “political son"—Teodoro’s most memorable move as NPC leader unfortunately became the most controversial as well. In their complaint, Teodoro and Fuentebella charged Davide with graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust, and culpable violation of the Constitution for the alleged misuse of the multi-billion peso Judicial Development Fund (JDF). The complaint alleged that Davide, the sole administrator of the JDF, did not pay judiciary employees more than P500 million as additional cost of living allowance; instead, the funds were used for the renovation and construction of Supreme Court buildings, the purchase of luxury cars and furniture, and the construction of vacation homes in Baguio City, among others. It had only been two years since Davide administered the oath-taking of then vice president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the new president in January 2001, after presiding over the historic impeachment trial of president Joseph Estrada. A generally popular magistrate, Davide got the
second highest net satisfaction rating for chief justices after the 1986 EDSA revolt: a 46-percent rating in March 2001, next only to Claudio Teehankee Sr.’s 52-percent rating in October 19 Thus, when deliberations on the impeachment complaint against Davide began, many eyebrows were raised. Civil society, religious, and business groups organized protests that drew the participation of former president Corazon Aquino, Teodoro's aunt (his mother Mercedes was Mrs. Aquino's cousin). They said the timing of the impeachment complaint was suspect: it came two years after the Davide-led Supreme Court ruled that coco levy funds were public in nature, and that Teodoro’s uncle Danding used these funds to acquire shares in the United Coconut Planters’ Bank.
'Justifiable basis' In a recent interview with GMANews.TV after one of his campaign sorties, Teodoro said he supported the impeachment complaint not because of his uncle but because he found “justifiable basis" to hold the chief magistrate accountable for the alleged misuse of the funds. “Why would I impress somebody who has pending cases before a court, and file a complaint where the person we are charging is a Chief Justice? That’s counterproductive," he said. “We could not bring the case to the Supreme Court, because naturally, the SC was involved. So the only legal proceeding is through an impeachment in Congress," said Teodoro. In a separate interview with GMANews.TV, it was apparent that Davide—who was appointed permanent representative to the United Nations following his retirement—has not forgotten Teodoro's move against him. Saying the impeachment complaint was not just an affront to him but an attempt “to destroy the independence of the judiciary," Davide said Teodoro’s spearheading of the impeachment complaint cost him votes in the coming elections. Davide hails from Cebu, the most vote-rich province in the country with over 2 million registered voters. His son, Cebu City councilor Hilario Davide III, is running for
governor under the Liberal Party, which is fielding Teodoro’s second cousin Benigno “Noynoy" Aquino III. Teodoro has “no chance" of winning in Cebu even though re-electionist Gwendolyn Garcia and her influential clan are supporting his candidacy, said Davide, who resigned from his UN post last April 1. “He was the mastermind of the impeachment case against me," the former chief justice said. “This will remind the people that as early as then, when he was still very young, he had the capacity and temerity already to fabricate charges." The impeachment attempt failed after the Supreme Court, in response to several petitions questioning the constitutionality of the complaint, ruled that it was unconstitutional. The NPC-led complaint had been filed within the one-year bar rule, which prohibits the filing of a complaint within a year after another complaint has been filed against the same official. Davide had been included in an impeachment complaint filed by Estrada against all SC justices in June 2003 for their supposed conspiracy against him during EDSA Dos. Led by Speaker de Venecia, the House upheld the high court’s ruling.
Leaving the NPC Teodoro admitted that the failure of the Davide impeachment complaint was “one of the factors" why he started distancing himself from the NPC, the party that propelled him into the political arena. “I accepted responsibility because the complaint did not succeed, so I resigned as chairman of the (NPC’s) House delegation. The responsibility was on my shoulders, and I took that responsibility," he said. Last year, Teodoro quit the NPC and joined Lakas-Kampi-CMD party. A few months later, he was anointed as the administration party’s standard-bearer by no less than President Arroyo. Teodoro said he started considering other political options when the NPC began looking for a new leadership.
“Nakahanap na sila ng bagong liderato, kaya naghanap na rin ako ng aking gagawin (They already found a new leadership, so I started searching for other things to do)," he said. He declined to elaborate on the matter. At the time, NPC was reported to be choosing between Senator Francis Escudero and Senator Loren Legarda for its standard-bearer. Legarda ultimately became the party's vice-presidential bet, while
Escudero quit the party and decided not to run at all in the May polls.
Teodoro’s resignation from his uncle's party and his subsequent move to run for president under Lakas-Kampi-CMD came as a surprise to his former political allies. "Our headquarters never received an official resignation letter," NPC spokesman and Valenzuela City Rep. Rex Gatchalian told GMANews.TV over the phone. The NPC did not receive any resignation letter from Teodoro’s wife, Tarlac Rep. Monica Louise “Nikki" Prieto-Teodoro, either. Gatchalian said they only found out about the couple’s move to Lakas-Kampi-CMD from the media. Two of Danding’s children, his oldest son Pangasinan Rep. Mark Cojuangco and his daughter
Lisa Cojuangco-Cruz, have said they were hurt and saddened by Teodoro’s sudden departure. While Danding has kept mum on the issue, his wife Gretchen has been quoted as saying her husband would support “anybody but Gibo." This alienation from uncle and political kingmaker Danding and his family seems to be another avoidable, inexplicable mistake for someone known for
"galing at talino." A 'tragedy of missed opportunities' In a seemingly playful twist of fate, the presidential candidate who bolted his party to join the ruling coalition now has to contend with a rash of defections from Lakas-Kampi-CMD to other parties. Among those who have left the party are Bukidnon Gov. Jose Zubiri, former Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis “Chavit" Singson, and
Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, who was President Arroyo’s economic adviser. Nograles, an administration stalwart, lambasted Teodoro for quitting as party chairman last March 30, saying he abandoned his party-mates just when they most needed him. “First he left the NPC, even his aunt is all over the media telling people to vote for anybody but Gibo. And then he left the chairmanship of the party at the start of the local campaign. A captain does not leave the ship in the hands of deck officers in the middle of a journey!" Nograles said in a statement. “It was a mistake to choose him in the first place. In the past several months that he promised to reverse the trend of defeat, nothing happened. It only led to defections left and right, and disenchantment everywhere," said Nograles. Political analyst Benito Lim said that while it may have seemed sensible for Teodoro to leave the NPC in favor of the more formidable Lakas-Kampi-CMD, he should have taken the reins of the ruling party instead of setting aside the concerns of local party-members. "He should’ve controlled it, and then talked to President Arroyo, be honest with her politically, ask her to endorse him but allow him to raise questions about her policies, her economic program, her political programs and how he can improve it," Lim said in an interview with GMANews.TV.
"Tahimik siya e. Parang sinusuportahan niya lahat ng policy ni Pangulong Arroyo (He is silent. He seems to be supporting all the policies of President Arroyo)," added Lim. He noted that political association with Mrs. Arroyo, whose administration has been dogged by corruption scandals, is negatively affecting Teodoro's chances of victory. But Teodoro is convinced that he made the right decision in leaving the NPC and joining the ruling party, saying the move has been beneficial in his campaign for the presidency. “Why would I regret that?" he said. "Many of my former colleagues from the NPC are even helping me out in my campaign now. My former party-mates in Mindanao, Negros and Northern Luzon, for example, are helping me out." Despite the defections, Teodoro insisted that he can still win the presidency with whatever is left of the ruling party’s political machinery. But Lim said the administration standard-bearer seems to have made “decisions that are not systematically studied." This means grabbing the spotlight at the right place and at the right time—something that Teodoro is perceived to have failed to do as congressman, as Defense secretary, and as chairman of the country’s ruling party, said Lim. Said the political analyst: “He missed good chances. Ang nangyari sa kanya ay (What happened to him, he is a) tragedy of missed opportunities."
– with a report from Andreo Calonzo/YA/HS, GMANews.TV 
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