Polibiz
Junjun: Most promising among the Tupas stars
Among the Tupas siblings penciled to run for public office in 2007, it is Board Member Niel "Junjun" Tupas, Jr. who is considered by both the political supporters and enemies of Gov. Niel D. Tupas, Sr. as the most promising--and the most articulate.
Other members of the Tupas clan rumored to be running for elective posts in the next elections are Nielex (for Iloilo City councilor), Boboy (reelection for municipal mayor of Barotac Nuevo).
Tweety, the only queen in the family, is also being pushed to run for board member but the lady doesn't want to reveal her cards this early.
But it is the board member, the eldest son of the governor, who is being closely watched in the political arena today because he will be shooting for the position previously held by his father--congressman of the fifth district of Iloilo.
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Junjun Tupas, whose victory is as sure as the sunset this afternoon, can become a national celebrity if he knows how to play his cards in the House of Representatives where the competence of the country's most brilliant legislators are tested to the hilt in the plenary debates and in the quality of legislation.
Being a lawyer, Junjun Tupas is no pushover when it comes to debate as he has already proven his mettle in the Provincial Board for being the only member of that august hall who never reads his speech.
Journalist Alex Vidal once called Board Member Tupas "the Little Benjamin" of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan in his column because of his ability to deliver a speech impromptu for hours without reading any hard copy.
"Even the most prolific speaker in his batch of local legislators would tremble every time Board Member Junjun Tupas would mount the podium and ransack the thoughts of his audience," Alex Vidal once wrote.
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This is bad news for whoever will muster enough courage to run versus Junjun Tupas.
I heard that his cousin, Boy Suplico, elder brother of the incumbent congressman Rolex Suplico, is being made to wear a hat too big for his head.
If that is the case, then, at this early, we can predict that the duel between Junjun Tupas and his rival will be lopsided and boring.
But just the same, Junjun Tupas needs a baptism of fire in politics so he can experience how it feels to be roasted and jabbed in the political campaign before his formal enthronement.
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A good friend had been bombarding me with text messages of results of the recently concluded World Cup in Germany and the Wimbledon in London over the weekend. Even in the middle of the night, my friend continued to give me updates of the games. It's a pity that I am not a sports enthusiast and so I did not hesitate to tell him to stop sending me those precious results as I could not appreciate them anyway for the simple reason that sports is not my forte. I am not exposed to sports although sometimes I love to watch people display their prowess as athletes.
Athletes, they say, are among the most disciplined people on earth that's why some political and economic wars are sometimes settled through sports competitions.