DU30 2016?
No, this is not a genetic code from some alien life form.
Visayans and Cebuano-speaking residents in Luzon could easily decipher the code like a jejemon text message: DUTIRTI in 2016.
Followers and admirers of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte have been happily spreading this on Twitter and Facebook (FB) to push for his presidency in 2016.
The play of letters and numbers calls to mind a witty campaign material some years ago.
Remember EDsa1992? In car bumper stickers and as shirtfront logo, EDsa1992 was the first hint that then Defense Secretary Fidel “Ed” V. Ramos was throwing his hat into the presidential ring.
With the presidential elections just 12 months away, the political cauldron has started to sizzle.
But since it is not officially election campaign season yet, the presidential hopefuls are making their intentions known via the social network.
Duterte, the tough-talking Davao City mayor and Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan member, has been playing coy even as his followers have created websites and fan pages pushing for his candidacy.
10 Duterte FB pages
There are about 10 “Rudy Duterte for President” pages on FB that are egging him to “Run Rudy Run” for the 2016 elections.
There are just as many for Sen. Grace Poe, a soft-spoken first-time senator whose appeal is just the opposite of that of Duterte.
Embattled Vice President Jejomar Binay also has several FB pages and websites dedicated to his achievements and daily activities as politician and public servant.
Interior Secretary Mar Roxas Movement for President is called MRP2016, while that of Sen. Bongbong Marcos is branded BBM 2016.
Social media darling
Social media darling Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago also has a strong presence on FB (2.7 million likes) and Twitter (1.5 million followers). She has about a dozen FB pages devoted to her planned presidential bid in 2016.
Senators Chiz Escudero and Sonny Trillanes also have their own “movement for president” in 2016.
Sen. Bong Revilla has one FB page for his “Bong Revilla for President 2016” while fellow detainee Sen. Jinggoy Estrada has a “Jinggoy Estrada for vice president 2016” FB page.
Former Sen. Richard Gordon has not made an official announcement yet, but there’s a “Dick Gordon for President” page on FB.
Business whiz Manuel V. Pangilinan has consistently denied any political plans, but there’s an MVP 2016 for “Manny-V-Pangilinan-for-President” movement on FB.
And last but not the least, there’s a “Manuel Olalia Quemuel for President 2016” on FB.
Who is he? The nuisance candidates are another story.