"Families really control several municipalities, several districts, the province," she says. The influence of these families extends everywhere - particularly in local government, Tiquia says. More than 70 percent of members of Congress have family members who serve there, too. These are problems exacerbated by the dynastic nature of Filipino politics, where the established economic elite has created political dynasties that put the Bush and Clinton clans to shame.
![heneral luna movie accomplishments heneral luna movie accomplishments](https://img.tfc.tv/xcms/categoryimages/3723/HENERAL-LUNA-MOVIE-STANDARD-THUMBNAIL-WITH-HD.jpg)
But the problems they are saying have not been solved - corruption, poverty, employment, jobs, those are not new issues - so it is also a reflection of the inability of leaders to solve some age-old problems we have in this country." "They don't have the wherewithal to launch a nationwide campaign. They want their voices heard - however briefly. Most of those who filed ultimately will have their bids rejected by the elections commission - they're what the media here calls "nuisance candidates." But the reason so many candidates have filed this time is the plight of the masses here, says Malou Tiquia, head of political consulting firm Publicus Asia. "The 51st state of the United States of America." "I'd like to make the Philippines one of the greatest nations on Earth - through U.S. Imelda Marcos, meanwhile, is an incumbent running to keep her a seat in Congress. Arturo Pacheco Reyes also wants Filipinos to embrace the American dream - and he means all of it.įormer first lady Imelda Marcos - whose abandoned collection of thousands of shoes became notorious as a symbol of excess after her husband was deposed as leader in 1986 - waves to supporters after her son Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., announced his vice presidential bid. Another says he was the former flight engineer for Osama bin Laden.Īnd then there's the guy who wants to legalize the four seasons in order to get rid of just the dry and rainy seasons.
![heneral luna movie accomplishments heneral luna movie accomplishments](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gRZ7dIYmgNU/hqdefault.jpg)
One of the 130 candidates who filed, a newspaper vendor, promises to make every Filipino a millionaire within five years. There were dragon dancers, and a man dressed as the hero of a recent blockbuster - Heneral Luna, a chest-thumping, jingoistic war movie that's landed right in the public's wheelhouse, given the hysteria over China's reclamation projects in the South China Sea. A record 130 candidates have filed to become president in 2016.Ī colorful cast turned out to register for the race late last month at the election commission headquarters in Manila. If you think the Republican presidential field is crowded, spare a moment for the Philippines. Aquino is the son of former President Corazon Aquino. President Benigno Aquino, center, appears with his party's next presidential and vice presidential candidates, Manuel Roxas, left, and Leni Robredo.