This is really comedy gold at it's finest, isn't it? Here's Congressman Gary Alejano's latest jingle. For non-Tagalog speakers -- allow me to give you translation of this Tagalog "cover" of the American World War 1 song called "The Caissons Go Rolling Over":
Soldier, soldier of every Filipino
Alejano, Aleeejano
Has the courage, has the heart
Will save us
Alejano, Aleeejano
When the Motherland is being snatched
Alejano will fight
When the people of the land are hungry
Alejano will fight
Soldier, soldier of every Filipino
Alejano, Aleeejano
Has the courage, has the heart
Will save us
Alejano, Aleeejano
When the land's coffers are being stolen
Alejano will fight
When the people of the land are being deceived
Alejano will fight
Alejano will fight
Gary Alejano, soldier of the Filipino
This campaign jingle made me laugh for several reasons. I don't have to be a Philippine Military Academy graduate or a political scientist to understand the absurdity. This brings back memories of where I wrote my post that talks about how taglines must meet the product's performance. It's simple business sense that tells you that no amount of preposterous marketing will ever sell a bad product in the long run. It's just like how David Guerrero's tagline of "It's More Fun in the Philippines" can be viewed as a catchy slogan (just like Switzerland) but it can backfire badly when expectations and reality don't meet.
The same can be true for Congressman Alejano. He dares to say that he has the courage and has the heart. Of course, you're supposed to project your strengths in your campaign but the question also involves how true are your claims? He claims to have the courage and the heart yet one can remember two major failed mutinies namely the Manila Peninsula Siege and the Oakwood Mutiny. Both were products of bad planning and cowardice so how can he even claim that he can fight anyone who threatens the Philippines?
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