THE militant Makabayan Coalition yesterday lamented the exclusion of former Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares in the senatorial slate of opposition presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo, saying it was a “lost opportunity” in terms of strengthening the opposition against a looming Marcos-Duterte alliance for next year’s national elections.
Makabayan nevertheless thanked the Vice President for meeting with their group last week “to discuss the many points of unity in our platforms.”
“While there are issues that require continuing discussions, we welcome VP Robredo’s positive response to the issues of sovereignty in the West PH Sea, peace talks, human rights, justice and accountability, as well as economic relief from the hardships due to the pandemic,” Makabayan said in a statement.
Presidential daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio met with presidential aspirant former Sen. Ferdinand Marcos over the weekend, giving rise to speculations that the two may eventually form a tandem for the 2022 polls.
Last Friday, Robredo announced that she has chosen labor leader and lawyer Sonny Matula for the 12th slot in her senatorial slate to represent marginalized sectors, citing Matula’s track record in championing workers’ rights and facing off with huge corporations.
Matula is the president of the Federation of Free Workers which is associated with the Akbayan party-list group of Sen. Risa Hontiveros. He is also the chair of the labor coalition Nagkaisa which is said to represent social democrats in the opposition ticket.
The Makabayan, which is composed party-list groups Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Kabataan and ACT in the House of Representatives, earlier said one of the reasons they have not endorsed Robredo’s presidential bid was they were yet to be given an chance to sit down with her and discuss their positions on particular issues, especially on pandemic response and labor contractualization. The left-leaning coalition said the points discussed provided them a basis “to continue engaging with her (Robredo) in pursuit of pro-people and progressive reforms and policies.”
“Keenly aware of the most immediate threat today, Makabayan will continue to cooperate with the Robredo-Pangilinan campaign, with the common objective of preventing a Duterte extension or a Marcos restoration. Even as Makabayan deliberates on its final choice of national candidates, we call on all democratic forces to exert all efforts to prevent the worst possible outcome for 2022,” they said.
Colmenares has been accepted as a senatorial candidate under the ticket of Sen. Manny Pacquiao who is running for president with Buhay party-list group Rep. Lito Atienza as his running mate.
It was former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, now a member of Robredo’s senatorial ticket, who opposed Colmenares’ inclusion in the Senate slate, accusing the Makabayan bloc of duplicity in the 2016 national elections.
Trillanes, chair of the Magdalo group which is composed of soldiers who rebelled against the Arroyo administration in 2003, last week said he found Makabayan bloc hard to trust because the group, in 2016, campaigned for presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte while Colmenares was a senatorial candidate under the ticket of Sen. Grace Poe who was also running for president.
The 10 other senatorial aspirants in Robredo’s ticket are reelectionists Hontiveros, Richard Gordon (Bagumbayan VNP Movement), Leila de Lima (Liberal Party), Joel Villanueva (Independent) and Juan Miguel Zubiri (Independent); former Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat Jr. (LP); former Vice President Jejomar Binay (United Nationalist Alliance); Chel Diokno of the Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino; Sorsogon Gov. Francis Escudero (Nationalist People’s Coalition); and Alex Lacson (Kapatiran Party).
Robredo is chairman of the Liberal Party but is running as an independent. Her running mate is LP president Sen. Francis Pangilinan.
Meanwhile, Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, presidential candidate of the Cusi faction of the ruling PDP-Laban party, said he met with Duterte-Carpio at the Davao City Hall.
The other faction has Pacquiao as presidential candidate.
In his Facebook post, Dela Rosa uploaded a picture of him and Duterte-Carpio inside the mayor’s office.
“Teaser lang muna ito sa aming meeting with Mayor Inday Sara minutes ago at Davao City Hall (This is just a teaser of our meeting with Mayor Inday Sara minutes ago at the Davao City Hall),” Dela Rosa said in his post.
Pressed what their meeting was about, Dela Rosa said in a text message to reporters: “I just reminded her that Nov. 15 is fast approaching.”
He was referring to the deadline for the substitution of candidates.
Talks are that Duterte-Carpio will eventually be the Cusi faction’s presidential candidate.
Duterte-Carpio has repeatedly said she is not running for president next year. — With Raymond Africa
