Bro. Eddie Villanueva runs again 'for God and country'

If he wins the presidency, Bro. Eddie Villanueva promises to deliver a corruption-free government during his term. On his second attempt to seek the highest elective post in the land, will Villanueva make it, after losing bitterly in the 2004 presidential polls? The standard-bearer of Bangon Pilipinas (Arise Philippines) party and leader-on-leave of the Jesus Is Lord Movement frequently exclaims “Diyos at Bayan!" in his campaign sorties, as he vows to uphold moral leadership during his presidency.

During his motorcades, his campaign jingle performed by rapper Gloc 9 are blasted from loudspeakers: “Sino pa nga ba’ng gagawa, sino’ng pagsisimulan, sino’ng magtataguyod ng bayan ni Juan? Eddie ako (Eh ‘di ako)." In between Bible verses, the 63-year-old religious leader warns that the May 10 elections can make or break the country. Thus, Villanueva says, voters should pick a new breed of leaders like those in his party’s slate. Although he has never held public office, Villanueva believes he was appointed by a higher spiritual power to rehabilitate the country from the scandal-ridden presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the most unpopular chief executive since the restoration of democracy in 1986. From political detainee to religious leader Eduardo Cruz Villanueva, a native of Bocaue town in Bulacan, has always taken pride in his humble beginnings. As a political activist protesting Martial Law in the 1970s, he landed in jail twice when government authorities cracked down against dissenters of Ferdinand Marcos’ government. During those tumultuous years, Villanueva taught economics at the Philippine College of Commerce (since renamed Polytechnic University of the Philippines), where he earned a Commerce degree in 1969. Villanueva likes to say he was “arrested" by God in 1973, when he fell victim to supposed land-grabbers in Bulacan. A few days after he decided to follow the religious path, the land-grabbers were arrested, an event he considers a miracle. Since then, he has lived out his conversion by giving Bible studies to his students. In 1978, he founded the Pentecostal group Jesus Is Lord Movement with 15 PUP students as his first members. Three decades later, JIL’s membership has grown to at least five million members in 45 countries. Three million of them are registered voters in the Philippines. Villanueva is counting on his followers, and what he says are hundreds of thousands of supporters from other religions, to fuel his presidential bid this year and avoid a repeat of his loss in 2004. Villanueva claims he was cheated in the past presidential polls, where Mrs. Arroyo was declared the winner over her closest rival Fernando Poe Jr., through orchestrated massive fraud. Malacañang has repeatedly denied accusations of cheating, which was revealed in a phone call Mrs. Arroyo made to former Elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano. The Commission on Elections counted more than 12 million votes for Mrs. Arroyo while Villanueva placed last in the five-way race; he obtained less than two million votes despite his much-vaunted following of three million JIL voters. Villanueva alleges that Mrs. Arroyo ordered her allies to shave off votes from him and transfer them to hers. “That was the order of the Malacañang tenant," he says, referring to Mrs. Arroyo, who was completing the unfinished term of former President Joseph Estrada before the 2004 elections. The JIL leader also attributed his loss to the lack of volunteers and poll watchers, and to some extent, his naïveté in Philippine politics. After all, Villanueva was the neophyte in the political landscape at that time. “But we know better now," he says. This time around, he has mobilized 350,000 volunteers who will deliver and protect the much-needed votes to propel him to the presidency. 2004 electionsFight vs Goliaths The religious leader believes his seven-point platform makes him eligible to become the country’s next leader. The blueprint for his future government contains seven Es: eradication of bad governance and corruption, energizing the economy, elevating the living standards of Filipinos, empowering the people, emancipating the people, educating the people, and establishing peace and order in the land. Villanueva and his party vow to eradicate “wholesale corruption" that has supposedly taken over small government offices. The religious leader likens this move and his candidacy to the fight between the scrawny boy turned Biblical hero David, and Goliath the giant. “Why do I have to leave my comfort zone and fight the Goliaths in this corrupt electoral system? But I don’t see it that way. Ever since I was young, I’ve always admired great men and women in history," he says. “We have a total war against corruption. We will wage it after we establish leadership by example with moral authority. We will implement genuine transparency and accountability, and it will start with the Office of the President," Villanueva adds. Part of his plans include a judicial review of high-profile cases pending before regional trial courts, the Court of Appeals, the Office of the Ombudsman, the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan, and the Supreme Court. Those found negligent, corrupt, and incompetent would be punished, he says. Should Villanueva win, the Bangon Pilipinas party also wants the President, Senate President, House of Representatives Speaker, and Chief Justice to sign a covenant promising to run a corruption-free government. “This is possible because with a robust economy yielding higher public revenues, salaries of all public personnel shall be increased to reduce their vulnerability to corruption. At the same time, performance review shall be institutionalized as basis for higher rewards for good public servants and severe penalties for the inept and the corrupt," the party platform reads. Among his plans are the creation of state universities per province and the modernization of the Philippine General Hospital. Federal government At the height of the campaign for the May 2010 polls, Villanueva and his running mate Perfecto Yasay Jr. as well as the party’s nine senatorial bets signed a pact to support self-determination in Mindanao through a constitutional convention that will lead to a shift from the presidential to a federal form of government. They said an autonomous Mindanao is the solution to the region’s poverty problem – six of the country’s poorest provinces are in the region – and the nagging insurgency waged by the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front. MILF spokesperson for military affairs Eid Kabalu signed the covenant as a witness, a signature that cost him his position – albeit temporarily. The MILF leadership suspended Kabalu for six months for his “gross violation" of the group’s policy against engaging in partisan political activities. The MILF has also criticized the party for claiming that Zafrullah Alonto, one of Bangon Pilipinas’ senatorial bets, once served as the group’s spokesman. The rebel group has disowned Alonto, saying the MILF never had anything to do with him. Bangon Pilipinas has yet to squarely address the MILF’s statements. No ill-gotten wealth The JIL’s 30th anniversary celebration in 2008 showed stark disparities between the religious movement’s leaders and less affluent members. While most of the members flocked to Manila from various provinces and camped out for hours at the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta Park, the leaders stayed comfortably inside air-conditioned rooms at the backstage. But in keeping with his strong anti-corruption stance, Villanueva defends his own financial record and asserts that he never used his position as Jesus Is Lord leader to amass wealth from the donations of its millions of members. “I am content with my lifestyle. My taste is different. I am not into materialism and extravagant items, but I am not abnormal," he says. He proudly adds that his home in Bulacan has remained as modest as the day it was built – in contrast to the opulent homes of many Filipino politicians. He likewise denied profiting from the tuition that students pay to Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation, a chain of schools that he runs with his wife Adoracion, known in JIL circles as “Sister Dory." As the school president, Villanueva says he gets a monthly salary of P50,000 which goes to his campaign funds. “The JIL Colleges Foundation is a non-stock, non-profit organization. I get my salary as a president, but there is no ownership. We have branches in 30 provinces," he explains. GMA News and Public Affairs’ Votebook examined Villanueva’s records at the Securities and Exchange Commission, which showed that he was listed as president, chair, board member and trustees in six foundations. But Villanueva says the organizations are all non-profit in nature. “I have no ambition to enrich myself especially in public office," he adds. Volunteer power Villanueva asserts that he has a tight budget for this year’s elections, and that his campaign kitty cannot match those of more prominent candidates. To make up for the barrage of political advertisements from his opponents, Villanueva relies on Bangon Pilipinas’ volunteers who shell out their own money and pool their own resources to create posters and campaign materials. While other candidates pay their staff to organize their campaign sorties and activities, Villanueva has a stream of supporters who are willing to put their lives on hold to support his candidacy. “I took a leave of absence for two months so I can help. I saved up for these months without salary. That is how much I believe in Bro. Eddie. I want him to be our president," says a supporter who does not want to be named. In provincial sorties, his volunteers spend for their own airfare, hotel accommodation, and food. The Bangon Pilipinas campaign team saves on local costs by relying on supporters in the provinces to provide the vehicles the candidates will use in their motorcades. Villanueva admits he is always in awe whenever he witnesses such outpouring of support. And even his own children get no special treatment. Cibac party-list Rep. Joel Villanueva, Eddie’s second child, had to pay P2,500 for a Bangon Pilipinas shirt. The religious leader’s family initially thumbed down on his plan to run for the second time. “I don’t want my dad to be hurt again," Joel Villanueva says in a television interview. But there is no stopping Bro. Eddie Villanueva from taking another shot at the presidency, even retaining the green and yellow campaign colors from 2004. One of the highlights of his campaign kick-off last February was the unfurling of the biggest Philippine flag, which spans more than two hectares, at Luneta Park – the site of the country’s Kilometer Zero, “where all things begin." Villanueva shed tears during the flag’s dramatic unfurling. Hoping to erase the memory of his loss in 2004, he is optimistic that he will make it this time. “We are about to make history," he says. A week before the May 10 polls, despite his poor showing in pre-elections surveys, Villanueva is determined more than ever to win his race, like a runner getting his second wind as he dashes to the finish line. – YA, GMANews.TV