MANILA - “Game na,” Eduardo Manzano, more popularly known for his screen name Edu, said with conviction during a national convention broadcast over national television. He was on the spotlight, a position he was used to in his more than 30 years in the entertainment industry.

The scenario was, however, different.

Instead of asking the viewers in his popular game show Pilipinas Game KNB?, Manzano was issuing a statement: He was ready for the 2010 elections, not as a senator as what he initially said, but as the running-mate of Lakas-Kampi-Christian Muslim Democrats standard-bearer Gilberto Teodoro Jr.

For years, Edu Manzano has charmed audiences with his deadpan humor and witty remarks. This time, he needs to charm voters to win the second highest position in the country.

Surprise candidate

The path to finding a suitable running mate for Teodoro was fast running out. Liberal Party presidential candidate Benigno Aquino III was running alongside Senator Manuel Roxas Jr and former president Joseph Estrada has proclaimed Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay as his Vice-President.

The top and strongest choice, Vice-President Noli de Castro, has outrightly declined offers from the ruling party and so have other possible candidates like Batangas Governor Vilma Santos, Senators Ramon Revilla Jr and Miguel Zubiri, as well as Cebu representative Gwen Garcia.

Teodoro’s self-proclaimed running-mate Ronaldo Puno also backed off from the race. Talks of a possible coalition between Lakas and the Nationalists People’s Coalition was also getting dim as rumors surfaced that the Nacionalista Party was also courting NPC’s VP bet, Senator Loren Legarda. Chiz Escudero, who just bolted NPC was out of the administration party’s options.

Then Manzano stepped in.

The proclamation came as a surprise. A day before agreeing to be Teodoro’s vice-president, Manzano strongly declined, explaining that he planned to run as senator under the LP ticket.

‘Desperate move’

The reactions were not positive when Manzano popped up in the race. According to Ramon Casiple of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms, fielding Manzano was a “desperate move” from the administration.

“There were no internal agreements [before Manzano was proclaimed as VP bet]. When Edu (Manzano) said yes, the immediate impulse of the executives was to call a press conference and proclaim the tandem,” he explained.

Benito Lim, political science from the Ateneo de Manila University, considers Manzano as neither an asset nor a liability for Teodoro’s campaign. Although popular, the TV host will not boost Teodoro’s already low ratings.

Lakas must be banking on Edu’s popularity as an actor, says Bobby Tuazon of the Center for People Empowerment and Governance. “The Gibo-Edu [tandem] is a desperate copycat of 2004, when Pres. Gloria Arroyo ran with TV anchor-senator De Castro,” he adds.

But unlike Manzano, Tuazon said de Castro was banking on his performance as a senator and on his high ratings in popular surveys. Manzano, however, is among the top 15 senators listed in the recent Pulse Asia surveys.

‘Actors don’t win’

Before Manzano became Teodoro’s running-mate, he has carved a name for himself in the movie industry. With around 90 films under his belt and numerous television shows, Manzano is also a former president of the Actors Guild of the Philippines.

Manzano is more famous for his hosting skills in game shows like The Weakest Link, 1 vs. 100 and Pilipinas Game KNB?. He also hosts ABS-CBN’s morning show Umagang Kay Ganda.

However, both Tuazon and Lim refer to the 2007 elections where actors Richard Gomez and Cesar Montano ran for senator but lost the bid.

“In the history of actors running for office, actors don’t always win,” Lim stresses. “I don’t think our voters will be that fickle.”

For Lakas, however, politics and showbusiness mesh perfectly well. In the history of the party, it has fielded actors and television personalities. Some of the popular figures who ran under the Lakas banner are Legarda and de Castro, former journalists and TV personalities, action-stars Revilla and Lito Lapid, award-winning celebrities Santos and Montano, current Quezon City vice-mayor Herbert Bautista, and Caloocan councilor Marjorie Baretto. Of these names, only Lapid will run with Lakas in the 2010 elections.

Aware of the raised eyebrows, Manzano said in his acceptance speech that the critics who questioned his capacity and intellect are underestimating the minds of a normal Filipino.

Similarities

Popularity aside, Puno, Manzano’s political mentor, believes the former Optical Media Board chair has the makings of a good public servant. Teodoro also believes Manzano has the ability to influence Filipinos in trusting the administration platform.

Similarly, Teodoro said he and Manzano have similar advocacies “especially with child pornography and raising the global competitiveness of the Filipinos.”

Manzano and Teodoro entered local politics at the same year. Manzano won as Makati vice-mayor in 1998 and was awarded for his “unblemished and outstanding performance” while in office. But his political pursuits were immediately stamped when he lost the mayoral bid against incumbent Jejomar Binay in 2001. The 2010 elections will be the second time Manzano and Binay will vie for one position.

He was supposed to make a comeback in politics in 2007 under Arroyo’s party but declined the offer due to financial constraints.

The two also served in the military. Aside from being secretary of the department of national defense, Teodoro holds the rank of colonel in the Philippine Air Reserve Force while Manzano trained under the United States military for 4 years when was 17 years old. After serving in the US, Manzano settled in the Philippines.

Unknown to many, Teodoro and Manzano are from the De La Salle University. A black belter, Manzano is the captain of the Judo team and was a three-time Philippine Judo Champion. He also became part of the Archer’s basketball team for a year.

Teodoro and Manzano speak English, Tagalog, Spanish, and Ilonggo. (Read: Profile of Edu Manzano)