Former senators Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV yesterday kicked off their Senate comeback bid with a morning Mass at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
Reelectionist Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa also started his bid for a second term by attending the high noon mass at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in QC, which coincided with the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Pangilinan and Aquino were joined by former Vice President Leni Robredo, Senate deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros, Rep. Perci Cendaña of the Akbayan party-list, and human rights lawyer Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno, who is running as Akbayan’s first nominee.
After the religious service, Pangilinan and Aquino embarked on a house-to-house visit at Barangay Krus na Ligas, also in Quezon City, to woo residents to vote for them during the midterm senatorial elections on May 12.
Pangilinan, who started his public service career as the youngest councilor of Quezon City in 1988, served as senator from 2016 to 2022. He ran but lost as Robredo’s vice presidential running mate in the 2022 national elections.
Aquino held office at the Senate from 2013 to 2019. He lost in his reelection bid in 2019.
Pangilinan’s and Aquino’s first major campaign rally, dubbed “A People’s Campaign Kick Off Rally,” was scheduled yesterday afternoon at the Dasmariñas City Arena in Cavite.
Cavite is considered a major electoral battleground as it has the highest number of registered voters at 2,460,981 in the CALABARZON Region, which is comprised of the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon. The region is the country’s top vote-rich region, with a total 9,761,170 million registered voters.
WORK HARD
Pangilinan said he and Aquino need to work hard to convince the people to vote for them and help them land two seats in the 12 vacant Senate slots.
“Ang biggest lesson [from the 2022 elections] ay kailangan mag-reach out, maging bukas, paramihin ang ating hanay… Lalo na sa supporters natin, huwag natin aawayin yung iba ang punto de vista. Sa halip, kumninsihin natin, hikayatin natin para maparami ang ating hanay (The biggest lesson [from the 2022 elections] is that we need to reach out, be open, increase our ranks… To our supporters, let us not engage others who have a different point of view from ours. Instead, we should convince them [to join us] so we can increase our ranks),” Pangilinan said in a chance interview after attending the Mass at the UP Chapel.
Pangilinan said his low ranking in poll surveys, particularly his 15th to 16th rank in the latest Pulse Asia survey for senatorial candidates, is a challenge that he is taking seriously, as he vowed to continue with his advocacy to lower food prices, and pursue good and honest governance.
Once elected, he said he will push for a Senate investigation to determine the factors that caused the prices of goods and services to soar, saying that these can be brought down and inflation can be controlled through efficient governance.
He recalled that during his stint as the food czar of the late President Benigno Aquino III from 2014 to 2015, he launched a successful campaign against abusive practices in rice trading, supply, and importation.
“Tumatakbo tayo hindi para pabagsakin ang administrasyon. Hindi rin natin hangarin na pabagsakin ang oposisyon. Ang mataas na presyo ng mga bilihin ang pababagsakin natin (I am running for office not to bring down the administration or the opposition. What I want to bring down is the prices of goods),” he said.
He said once the price of rice is controlled, inflation can also be managed.
‘PRINCIPLED BATO’
Dela Rosa said that if he wins a second term as senator, he will propose to remove the allocation of confidential and intelligence funds (CIFs) in the annual national budget to prevent government leaders from abusing it.
“Ang solusyon diyan para hindi talaga maabuso is tanggalin. Kung ayaw natin na maabuso, then tanggalin (We should just scrap it if we don’t want it abused),” Dela Rosa said.
If his proposal is not possible, he said the grant of the CIFs should be limited to agencies that are relevant to national security and law enforcement.
“Ako ang merong bato na paninindigan at hindi niyo ako mabibili. Hindi niyo ako mababayaran. Bato yung aking prinsipyo pagdating sa kabutihan ng nakararami (I have a rock-hard stand on my principles and I cannot be bought. You cannot buy me. My principles are rock-hard when it comes to the welfare of the people),” he said.
Dela Rosa said he will also push for the passage of measures to enhance the government’s fight against illegal drugs, illegal gambling, and agricultural smuggling, and the imposition of the death penalty against heinous crimes and drug trafficking.
He likewise vowed to support bills against political dynasty and back moves to publicize the Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) of public officials,
He also said he will ask the government to provide livelihood programs to the marginalized sector instead of giving them financial aids, and also press for the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes.
Dela Rosa is seeking a second and last six-year term in the Senate under the PDP (Partido Demokratiko Pilipino) party.
During his first term, Dela Rosa played a vital role in passing laws related to public order and security, such as the Anti-Terrorism Act, BFP Modernization Act, and the law lowering the minimum height requirement for applicants in the Philippine National Police (PNP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), and Bureau of Correction (BuCor), among others.
His legislative priorities also include measures that will address the plight of Filipino workers, including the passage of the measure seeking to grant a P100 wage hike to minimum wage earners.
