BY JOCELYN MONTEMAYOR and ASHZEL HACHERO
THE ruling party PDP-Laban will remain the dominant party and a “force to be reckoned with” in next year’s elections despite the withdrawal of its leading figures, President Duterte as senatorial aspirant, and Sen. Christopher Go as presidential bet.
This is according to Cabinet Secretary and acting presidential spokesman Karlo Nograles who is also executive vice president of the Cusi faction of the PDP-Laban. He said many of the incumbent local government officials who are seeking re-election are PDP members.
Duterte withdrew his candidacy for senator on Tuesday while Go formally withdrew his candidacy for president. They were set to run under the Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan (PDDS) which is an ally of PDP Laban.
Former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who is running for president with presidential daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio as running mate, lauded Go’s withdrawal, saying it “signals the consolidation of administration forces to the BBM-Sara UniTeam.”
Go announced his withdrawal last month and formalized it only on Tuesday.
Marcos said he is “saddened by the unexpected withdrawal” of President Duterte from the Senate race.
“President Duterte has achieved so much for the country in a short period of time,” he said.
Marcos vowed the UniTeam will continue Duterte’s legacy if they are elected.
Duterte has branded Marcos a “weak leader and said he is not supporting his presidential bid.
Lito Banayo, campaign manager and chief strategist of Manila Mayor and presidential aspirant Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, said the mayor is the candidate “more compatible” with the President but added, “I don’t think he’s going to make a decision very soon. I think he will look at the candidates, he will assess them, what they are doing and how they are doing but at the end of the day, I think he will make a decision.”
Banayo was also part of Duterte’s campaign team in 2016 and was appointed by the latter as the country’s envoy to Taiwan when he won the presidency.
He resigned in August this year to help in Moreno’s campaign. He is a veteran political strategist, having been part of the presidential campaigns of Joseph Estrada in 1998, Sen. Panfilo Lacson in 2004, and the late Benigno Aquino III in 2010.
In recent days, Moreno has been openly courting Duterte’s support, especially after Go withdrew from the presidential race.
DQ PETITIONS
The move to disqualify Marcos from the presidential race gained ground after several civil society organizations yesterday presented to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) over 15,000 signatures supporting petition filed against the former.
In a letter submitted to the Comelec, the groups led by the Alliance of Women for Action Towards Reform (AWARE) manifested their support to the petition to cancel the certificate of candidacy (COC) of Marcos filed by the group of Fr. Christian B. Buenafe.
The groups said the petition had garnered 15,105 signatures in the online petition platform, change.org, after it was posted just last November 29. Attached to the letter submitted to the Comelec are copies of signatures of the supporters.
Aside from AWARE, also affixing their signatures in the letter are the Psychologists 2022, EveryWoman, Samasa Alumni Association, Manindigan Na!, US Filipinos for Good Governance, Nagkaisang Tugon Alumni, and Women2022.
In their petition against Marcos, Buenafe and his group asked the Comelec to cancel Marcos’ COC for making false representation in his COC when he did not mention his prior conviction for failure to file income tax returns from 1982 to 1985.
Buenafe’s group said Marcos’ conviction bars him from running for president and holding any position for public office.
Aside from Buenafe’s petition, six other petitions aiming to foil Marcos’ presidential bid have been filed at the Comelec. — With Gerard Naval
