I had a distinct opportunity to an evening party with Sen. Manny Villar and many Filipino-Chinese business leaders last night, at the house of mining mogul Gerry Angping. Villar makes sense when he said what we need now is a proven and tested business CEO like him. Unfortunately, something is still lacking in him - the capacity to fire up or inspire his audience. True enough, he is replete with credentials and qualifications, probably the best in the current presidential aspirants, but he needs to work hard on his image, albeit trapo and bland. Well his ads "AKALA MO" are working for him. But he needs to complement that with stage presence. But the best thing I had last night was he gave me a reason to really think about 2010. Fortunately I was seated right in front of him when he spoke, so I was closed enough to really "scrutinize" him, hehehe.
For example, he was very business-like when asked if he could guarantee to enrich the Philippines just like what he did to himself, literally rising from rags to riches. His answer was that “the probability is very high” compared to the other candidates. Given his track record as a no-nonsense CEO, he has the expertise he can bank on. Plus the fact that he has been “elected by peers” as their leader, citing his being House Speaker and Senate President, stressing the importance of peer respect for a president.
His platform of good governance is also practical and seemingly doable compared to the motherhood statements of many other aspirants. But Villar is still dogged by mistrust, owing to his being an astute businessman. He needs to work on that, too.
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