S en. Francis “Chiz” Escudero was the guest speaker yesterday at a reception at the Philippine Village (PV) in the Eagle Rock District of Los Angeles, California. The United Bicolandia-Los Angeles (UBLA) hosted the event, although the PV owner, Oscar Jornacion, donated the use of one of the venue’s function rooms. Mr. Jornacion heads the Tri-Media Group, which publishes the California Examiner weekly newspaper and operates the Radio Manila. Wags said that by donating the rental for the use of a PV hall, Mr. Jornacion, who hails from La Union Province, proved that he is just as generous as the most-charitable Bicolano.

* Senator Escudero said in his extemporaneous speech to some 80 Bicolanos and friends of Bicolandia that he has memorized all the speeches of American President Barack H. Obama. He said that he is translating all the Obama words and phrases into Tagalog. He recited even a paragraph of one of Mr. Obama’s campaign speeches.

* Did you know the Philippine Constitution requires those who run for the Philippine presidency to be at least 40-years old? Senator Escudero will turn 40 on Oct. 10, 2009. His backers are portraying him to be the Filipino version of Mr. Obama.

F or a fact, nearly all nationally-known aspirants for the Philippine presidency want to emulate Barack H. Obama. Hence, the Filipino presidential bets’ self-serving attempts to become the Filipino Obama have begun . . .

* Did you know that Philippine Vice President Noli de Castro wants to emulate Mr. Obama and write his version of “The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream”? Mr. De Castro wants also his literary hardback to be comparable to Jose P. Rizal’s celebrated books. Filipino-American Poet-pundit Fred Burce Bunao denies that he suggested to the Filipino Vice President this book title: “Noli Me Tangangere: Thoughts on Avoiding a Filipino Nightmare.”

* Opponents of former President Joseph Estrada say that he (Erap) can also be compared to Mr. Obama. Mr. Estrada, if he runs again for the presidency in 2010, can be called the “Bobobama.”

* Sen. Mar Roxas’ backers think that he can be the real Filipino Obama. Some of them have suggested, however, that Senator Roxas start to use the expression, “Putong Obama, ops, Ama,” instead of his favorite, “Put_ng Ina.” (Editor’s Note: To read again Senator Roxas’ misadventure on the Filipino favorite cuss phrase, please click on this link:

Mar Roxas’ Presidential Ambition Goes Down the Gutter?)

* Political handlers of Sen. Manny Villar believe that Senator Escudero will settle for the vice presidency and become their candidate’s running mate. They hope to cash in on the popularity of a resort in Quezon Province called, “Villar-Escudero,” ops, “Villa Escudero.”

* Sen. Loren Legarda’s political handlers compare her to President Obama in this sense: Barack Hussein Obama was said to be a Muslim before he became a Christian some two decades ago. Senator Legarda was a Christian before she became a Muslim also some two decades ago. But the irreverent pundits Bunao and former University of the Philippines Professor Cesar Torres (who tutored Ms. Loren Legarda in college) remind wags that only a Muslim male can have four wives while a Muslim woman cannot have four husbands.

* On the other hand, backers of Sen. Ping Lacson say that their candidate comes closest to President Obama because Mr. Lacson hails from Cavite, which is closest to Batangas. Remember that there are some people who say that Mr. Obama has a connection to Batangas. Yes, the American President was said to have been named partly after the Batangas native coffee, as reported in this article, Top Ten Reasons Why Senator Obama Is a Foreign-Relations Expert

* The backers of Sen. Richard Gordon say that their candidate is the real Filipino version of Mr. Obama because Mr. Gordon is the Philippine edition of the “Oreo Candidate,” to use the term originally coined by MabuhayRadio.com columnist Jesse Jose of Seattle, Washington. As explained in Mr. Jose’s A Cup O' Kapeng Barako  column, then Senator Barako, oops, Barack Obama is an Oreo, as he is half-White and half-Black. Senator Gordon’s rah-rah boys say that he is half-Brown and half-White, which colors are close enough for an Oreo. To read Ka Jesse’s article in its entirety, please click on this hyperlink, Is Sen. Barack Obama an “Oreo” or a “Brother”?

* And finally Chicago-based Manila Bulletin Correspondent, Joseph G. Lariosa, says that all presidential candidates can claim to be as young as Barack H. Obama (child-like) for as long as they are not “isip bata” (childish). To which remark, Poet Bunao and Professor Torres can only laugh out loud (LOL). And more LOL. # # #

M ore coverage of the Senator Escudero visit to the Philippine Village in Los Angeles, California, in “Filipino Fun Facts (Part VII)” . . .