POINT BLANK

Jamby Madrigal for Senator!

                 Zamboanga City will play host to the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino
                 (LDP) senatorial bets today as they go on a campaign sortie to sway La
                 Bella’s votes to their side. Of course, except for one, most of the LDP
                 bets are old pogis who have been in the political battlefields for so long
                 a time that they have been branded by the electorate as political
                 trapos. Oh yes, the new face in the LDP lineup who definitely is not a
                 trapo is none other than Ma. Ana Madrigal or “JAMBY” for short. A
                 granddaughter of former Senator Vicente Madrigal of Ligao, Albay,
                 Jamby is also the granddaughter of hero and martyr, former Chief
                 Justice Jose Abad Santos. All prominent and illustrious names to
                 reckon with.
                                       *   *   *
                 At the present, Jamby Madrigal is a child advocate who fights for the
                 rights and welfare of children. She has decided to devote her life for
                 children’s causes so much so her Books For Barangay Foundation in
                 l997 has provided over half a billion peso worth of books and
                 educational materials to various schools all over the country. Jamby
                 was also instrumental in the founding of the ABLE Foundation - an
                 organization concerned with streetchildren - being its Chair until
                 October 1999. Indeed a child advocate, media personality and public
                 servant!
                                       *   *   *
                 For those not in the know, in her commitment to peace-keeping
                 efforts, Jamby during her stint as the Presidential Adviser for Children’s
                 Affairs, was in Basilan during the height of the Mindanao conflict -
                 amidst threats to her security - to personally help the child-victims of
                 the war. Her office had also sent a team of psychologists to conduct
                 debriefing sessions with child-victims and survivors of the war.
                                       *   *   *
                 By the way, when asked what will be her first three bills if elected to
                 the Senate, Jamby said her top three priorities are children, children
                 and children. She disclosed that if elected Senator, she will carefully
                 assess how every piece of legislation - be it on economics, education,
                 budget allocation, etc. will affect the lives of our children. According to
                 her, she will be their voice in the Senate. “We must remember that in
                 everything we do or fail to do, children are always at the receiving end.
                 Every decision that we make inevitably affects their young lives.”
                                       *   *   *
                 Here’s to La Bella’s electorate: Please spare a little of your time to
                 attend this afternoon’s LDP rally at Plaza Pershing and watch Jamby
                 speak. To the mothers, do bring your children along as Ms. Madrigal
                 do love and care for them very much. See you there! Also, don’t forget
                 to include Jamby’s name in your ballot comes May 14, 2001 as the
                 country needs new faces in the Senate more than it needs the
                 traditional politicians or trapos.