Glimpses of Hope

The text invitation yesterday was for the book launch of Luid Ka! - the story of the crusade for good governance that led to the victory of Among Ed, Fr. Eddie Panlilio, as governor of Pampanga.

I decided to go because I wanted to meet the two guest speakers – Bishop Ambo David, the younger brother of Randy David, and Among Ed himself. I hadn’t heard either of them speak yet, so I went to the Abe restaurant at Trinoma where the book launch was being held.

I was early, and ordered suman and hot chocolate. When Among Ed arrived, I couldn’t approach him to introduce myself. He had to pay attention to a stream of his friends and constituents. While I sat quietly at my table, someone approached me and asked if I was Ed dela Torre. He wore a cross, so I presumed he was Bishop David. “Yes,” I said, “I came here to listen to you and Among Ed.”

I am glad I did. Bishop Ambo’s talk was about “Among Ed and the future of Pampanga people power.” He is a scholar and an eloquent speaker. He gave a frank critique of the church in Pampanga, including an interesting tidbit that 25 of the 125 priests openly acknowledge their ties to the jueteng lord. His proposition, quoting from a missiologist, is that we have enough intellectual-theological resources in the church. What we need is to rediscover the “romantic fire” in religion.

He considers what happened in the campaign-crusade of Among Ed an example of such “romantic fire.” Hearing the testimonies and reminiscences, I agree. Though I had no money to buy a copy of the coffee table book, I browsed through the pictures and texts, which give the reader a sense of the enthusiasm and passion of the volunteers.

But toward the end of his talk, Bishop Ambo enumerated eight reasons that should sober up those who came to celebrate the crusade that brought Among Ed to victory. All the Pampanga mayors, except one, are opposed to Among Ed; the same for the Vice Governor and the provincial Board. His expose of the 500 thousand peso “gift” from Malacanang has put him on a collision course with the President.

One of the speakers expressed his worry about three possible moves against Among Ed – recount, recall, and “requiem.”

I managed to exchange brief conversations with Among Ed in between visitors greeting him and asking him to autograph their copies of the book. He said that March 29 is the anniversary of his filing of candidacy. “But there is another anniversary today,” he added with a mischievous wink. He was alluding to the anniversary of the NPA.

I didn’t know that he had his theological studies at our Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay, though he stayed at the study house of Saint Augustine Seminary. “Do you think your experience as social action director prepared you for this political involvement?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said, “but also the theological and political formation I got at the seminary.” He was ordained in 1980 and was part of the politicized generation who looked positively on those of us who joined the revolutionary movement against the dictatorship.

There are a number of former activists in his campaign, and even more ex-seminarians. Some of them are in Kapampangang Marangal Inc., the sponsors of the book and the event. KMI is composed of those volunteers who decided to organize themselves after the elections to provide Among Ed the critical support he needs in order to govern effectively.

I can understand why there were repeated mention of “miraculous” to describe the successful campaign of Among Ed. For a while, most of the Kapampangans were getting resigned to a choice of a “lesser evil” – between the “quarry lord” and the “jueteng lord,”not just of Pampanga, but of the whole country. The latter’s campaign budget was supposed to be 400 million pesos.

But a group of citizens and religious leaders rallied around the cry – “Choose good. Reject evil.” They went through a short list of lay candidates, but none of them agreed. Even Fr. Ed was very reluctant, but eventually agreed due to their persistence. His decision had immediate price, since he was suspended from his priestly duties. In addition, he was forbidden to use any church resources for his campaign.

“None of us had any experience in running a campaign,” one of the core group confessed. Another speaker called their campaign “organized chaos.”

What came across in their telling was the spirit and energy of volunteerism. “Imagine,” they said, ” people were lining up in a queue at the headquarters to give their donations and offer their services!”

Another important source of energy (and funds) for the campaign were the overseas Kapampangan. They may even play a more important role after the elections, since they can influence the local officials in their home towns to cooperate with Among Ed. A group of singers has been organized to tour the USA to give thanks to them and to discuss how they can continue the crusade.

The singers gave us a sample of the songs for their tour. It had a catchy tune and enumerated Pampanga delicacies and culture. At the end of the program, they invited Among Ed to join them in singing the campaign song which has become an anthem. I don’t understand Kapampangan, but I sensed that it talked of taking a stand and recovering Kapampangan pride and dignity.

I caught inspiring glimpses of hope in the stories they told and in the spirit I sensed in the community gathered around Among Ed.

We exchanged phone numbers and e-mail addresses, and promised to have a longer conversation soon.

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