Time flies. We’re already in the middle of the year and, by October, candidates will be flocking to the Commission on Elections to file their respective certificates of candidacies for next year’s midterm elections, scheduled for May 2019.

In Bacolod City, talk surrounding Abang Lingkod partylist Rep. Stephen Paduano as a possible challenger to incumbent Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia is brewing. If true, it will be an interesting election as the congressman has a good chance of winning, equipped with good machinery and money – plenty of money; without money, running for public office would be an exercise in futility.

However, money does not always assure elected office, I’ve seen it many times. I campaigned for a Bacolod City mayoral candidate in 2010. We lost but not because he didn’t have money, we lacked the machinery.

With regard to provincial elections, is it true Negros Occidental Vice Government Eugenio Jose Lacson will team up with former Negros Occidental fifth district Rep. Jeffrey Ferrer? With the two coming from rival local political coalitions, is it possible? We should wait but, for the sake of discussion, in my opinion, it would be good for the province. Some many disagree because the election would not be as interesting as compared to these two pairing-up.

It would also be economical for them to run together. They would only need to spend for the bare necessities, which will disappoint political operators, barangays officials, and others who expected to benefit from the election cycle; for those in politics, elections are an opportunity to earn a living.

Both Ferrer and Lacson are good men and neither has been involved in graft or corruption. They are exemplary in the exercise of public service; represent the true essence of leadership; and their tandem would bring more progress to the province, particularly for the countryside.

Unfortunately, some mediocre politicians have mastered the art of being a politician and only think about the next election. They disregard the needs of their constituents, leaving matters such as traffic, peace and order, and garbage collection unresolved. Sometimes elected officials need to unite, forget the political agenda, and serve the people; people should be paramount to individual ego and ambition.

I look forward to a Lacson-Ferrer tandem. Abangan.

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I would to commend Dean Jose Paulo Villasor for bringing the best professors from Manila as resource persons for the ongoing Bar Exam review at the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos School of Law. To my fellow bar reviewees, may the good Lord be with us all./WDJ