BY JAMES KONSTANTIN GALVEZ Reporter (The Manila Times)
Link: http://www.manilatimes.net/index.php/top-stories/15286-lakas-vows-16-million-votes-to-ensure-gibo-win
Despite the reported exodus of members of the ruling coalition, leaders of the administration party Lakas-Kampi Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) on Wednesday insisted that their standard-bearer Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro will win the May 10 elections.
“We have a massive base of local government officials from barangay [village] captains, councilors, mayors, congressmen and governors. Basing on our computations, we can deliver 10 million to 16 million solid votes for our candidate, Gibo Teodoro,” Lakas-Kampi CMD Chairman Amelita Villarosa said during a press briefing in Malacañang.
She pointed out that reported “personal choices and announcements” of some party members did not affect the program that has been set up by Lakas-Kampi CMD.
“Everything is on schedule” where the administration party and the candidacy of Gibo are concerned, said Villarosa, also the House Deputy Speaker.
Rey Roquero, Lakas-Kampi CMD deputy secretary general, agreed, saying that the defectors were the same people whom they were expecting to leave.
Meanwhile, Villarosa downplayed a statement of former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr., who claimed that the people of Cebu province will give Liberal Party standard-bearer Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino 3rd the votes that he needs to win the race to Malacañang.
She cited Lakas-Kampi CMD’s “dominance” in the province.
Gov. Gwen Garcia of Cebu, according to Villarosa, continues to support Teodoro, invoking palabra de honor (word of honor) in rallying her One Cebu members behind the administration candidate.
Apparently to stop any more defections, Villarosa said that they would continue to communicate with House Speaker Prospero Nograles over his reported plan to bolt Lakas-Kampi CMD.
She announced that the ruling party’s executive committee would meet to decide on whether to impose sanctions on the defectors.
Those who bolted the administration coalition were called rats by former Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez.
“Only rats abandon a sinking ship, but the ship is not yet sinking and therefore there is nothing to abandon,” Gonzalez said late Tuesday in Iloilo City.
More than 20,000 people were reported to have attended a Lakas-Kampi CMD rally in the city.
“In the first year of my presidency, should I be elected, national-government support for Iloilo will pour in,” Teodoro told the crowd.
“I’ll move in and move up, and moving to win. I have a good chance of winning the elections because of the support of the local officials here,” he said.
Gonzalez, who is running for city mayor, said that members of the ruling party in the city are solidly behind Teodoro’s bid to lead the country in the next six years.
According to him, there are no defectors in Iloilo City.
The defections will favor Teodoro, said Lakas-Kampi CMD senatorial candidate Raul Lambino.
They would translate to “sympathy votes” for the administration candidate, Lambino explained.
He, however, said that he could understand why politicians transfer from one part to another, with the absence of a law against turncoatism.
Meanwhile, Teodoro led online mock elections conducted by a leading daily broadsheet, garnering a hefty 47 percent of the total votes cast.
In response to the question “Who will you vote for as the next Philippine president in the May 10 elections next month?” which was posted on Manila Bulletin’s mb.com.ph website, 27,521, or 47 percent chose Teodoro.
Aquino settled for a far second, with 15,499, or 27 percent of the votes cast, followed in third place by Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino standard-bearer, former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada with 5,543, or 10 percent of the votes.
Bagumbayan’s Sen. Richard “Dick” Gordon landed in fourth place with 4,665, or 8 percent of the votes, while Nacionalista Party’s Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr. was fifth with 2,452, or 4 percent. Television evangelist and Bangon Pilipinas candidate Eddie Villanueva got 3 percent, or 1,918 of the total votes cast.
In similar mock elections conducted by Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) through the month of March, Teodoro was in first place in one city and landed either in the No. 2 or No. 3 position in other parts of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.
Despite the defection of Gov. Jose “Joey” Salceda of Albay to the Liberal Party, the Nacionalista Party also on Wednesday said the NP still remains to be the party of choice of most local officials.
The NP’s Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano said that as of Wednesday, they had 28 new members from Mindanao even as four other local officials opted to remain with the Lakas-Kampi CMD.
He named some of the latest additions to the NP roster as Gov. Jose Ma. Zubiri Jr. of Bukidnon, Mayor Florencio Flores Jr. of Malaybalay City, Rep. Marina Clarete of Misamis Occidental, Mayor Ernie Clarete of Plaridel, (Misamis Occidental), former Rep. Tikbong Badelles of Lanao del Norte, Rep. Yevgeny Vincent Emano of Misamis Oriental, Gov. Arturo Uy and Rep. Manuel “Way Kurat” Zamora of Compostela Valley; Gov. Daisy Fuentes of South Cotabato and Vice Mayor Florencia Congson of General Santos City.
Villar said that the defections were not unexpected as “more and more local officials” are calling him by telephone everyday to express their support for the NP ticket.
But in Bacolod City, the capital of Negros Occidental province, the color in vogue was not orange (Villar’s campaign) but yellow (Aquino’s).
The colors game has been making headlines in the local papers after Gov. Isidro Zayco of Negros Occidental and Rep. Ignacio Arroyo (fifth district) along with 15 local officials vowed that they would work hard to ensure that Negros Occidental remains green (Teodoro’s).
Two mayors have openly endorsed Aquino—Mayor Alejandro Mirasol of Binalbagan and Mayor Eric Saratan of Talisay—who, sources said, was caught off-guard when actress Kris Aquino, Noynoy’s sister, cajoled him into supporting her brother. Saratan earlier signed a manifesto of support for Teodoro as well.
Villar has the support of Vice Gov. Emilio Yulo 3rd, Rep. Jeffrey Ferre (fourth district), EB Magalona Vice Mayor Rex Depasucat and Board Member Manuel Ko, among others.
Critics of Aquino were skeptical about the LP standard-bearer’s crowd-drawing power, whether it will exceed the number of people who came out to see his sister Kris who visited the province a couple of weeks ago.
Some were saying that the crowd may not be truly for Aquino, but for Roxas who remains popular in Negros Occidental and supported by most officials because of his ties to the province. Roxas’ mother, Judy Araneta Roxas, is from Negros Occidental and has vast landholdings in the province.
Jefferson Antiporda, Francis Earl A. Cueto, Ma. Ester L. Espina and Jowell Miguel T. Reodica
Link: http://www.manilatimes.net/index.php/top-stories/15286-lakas-vows-16-million-votes-to-ensure-gibo-win
Despite the reported exodus of members of the ruling coalition, leaders of the administration party Lakas-Kampi Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) on Wednesday insisted that their standard-bearer Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro will win the May 10 elections.
“We have a massive base of local government officials from barangay [village] captains, councilors, mayors, congressmen and governors. Basing on our computations, we can deliver 10 million to 16 million solid votes for our candidate, Gibo Teodoro,” Lakas-Kampi CMD Chairman Amelita Villarosa said during a press briefing in Malacañang.
She pointed out that reported “personal choices and announcements” of some party members did not affect the program that has been set up by Lakas-Kampi CMD.
“Everything is on schedule” where the administration party and the candidacy of Gibo are concerned, said Villarosa, also the House Deputy Speaker.
Rey Roquero, Lakas-Kampi CMD deputy secretary general, agreed, saying that the defectors were the same people whom they were expecting to leave.
Meanwhile, Villarosa downplayed a statement of former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr., who claimed that the people of Cebu province will give Liberal Party standard-bearer Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino 3rd the votes that he needs to win the race to Malacañang.
She cited Lakas-Kampi CMD’s “dominance” in the province.
Gov. Gwen Garcia of Cebu, according to Villarosa, continues to support Teodoro, invoking palabra de honor (word of honor) in rallying her One Cebu members behind the administration candidate.
Apparently to stop any more defections, Villarosa said that they would continue to communicate with House Speaker Prospero Nograles over his reported plan to bolt Lakas-Kampi CMD.
She announced that the ruling party’s executive committee would meet to decide on whether to impose sanctions on the defectors.
Those who bolted the administration coalition were called rats by former Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez.
“Only rats abandon a sinking ship, but the ship is not yet sinking and therefore there is nothing to abandon,” Gonzalez said late Tuesday in Iloilo City.
More than 20,000 people were reported to have attended a Lakas-Kampi CMD rally in the city.
“In the first year of my presidency, should I be elected, national-government support for Iloilo will pour in,” Teodoro told the crowd.
“I’ll move in and move up, and moving to win. I have a good chance of winning the elections because of the support of the local officials here,” he said.
Gonzalez, who is running for city mayor, said that members of the ruling party in the city are solidly behind Teodoro’s bid to lead the country in the next six years.
According to him, there are no defectors in Iloilo City.
The defections will favor Teodoro, said Lakas-Kampi CMD senatorial candidate Raul Lambino.
They would translate to “sympathy votes” for the administration candidate, Lambino explained.
He, however, said that he could understand why politicians transfer from one part to another, with the absence of a law against turncoatism.
Meanwhile, Teodoro led online mock elections conducted by a leading daily broadsheet, garnering a hefty 47 percent of the total votes cast.
In response to the question “Who will you vote for as the next Philippine president in the May 10 elections next month?” which was posted on Manila Bulletin’s mb.com.ph website, 27,521, or 47 percent chose Teodoro.
Aquino settled for a far second, with 15,499, or 27 percent of the votes cast, followed in third place by Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino standard-bearer, former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada with 5,543, or 10 percent of the votes.
Bagumbayan’s Sen. Richard “Dick” Gordon landed in fourth place with 4,665, or 8 percent of the votes, while Nacionalista Party’s Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr. was fifth with 2,452, or 4 percent. Television evangelist and Bangon Pilipinas candidate Eddie Villanueva got 3 percent, or 1,918 of the total votes cast.
In similar mock elections conducted by Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) through the month of March, Teodoro was in first place in one city and landed either in the No. 2 or No. 3 position in other parts of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.
Despite the defection of Gov. Jose “Joey” Salceda of Albay to the Liberal Party, the Nacionalista Party also on Wednesday said the NP still remains to be the party of choice of most local officials.
The NP’s Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano said that as of Wednesday, they had 28 new members from Mindanao even as four other local officials opted to remain with the Lakas-Kampi CMD.
He named some of the latest additions to the NP roster as Gov. Jose Ma. Zubiri Jr. of Bukidnon, Mayor Florencio Flores Jr. of Malaybalay City, Rep. Marina Clarete of Misamis Occidental, Mayor Ernie Clarete of Plaridel, (Misamis Occidental), former Rep. Tikbong Badelles of Lanao del Norte, Rep. Yevgeny Vincent Emano of Misamis Oriental, Gov. Arturo Uy and Rep. Manuel “Way Kurat” Zamora of Compostela Valley; Gov. Daisy Fuentes of South Cotabato and Vice Mayor Florencia Congson of General Santos City.
Villar said that the defections were not unexpected as “more and more local officials” are calling him by telephone everyday to express their support for the NP ticket.
But in Bacolod City, the capital of Negros Occidental province, the color in vogue was not orange (Villar’s campaign) but yellow (Aquino’s).
The colors game has been making headlines in the local papers after Gov. Isidro Zayco of Negros Occidental and Rep. Ignacio Arroyo (fifth district) along with 15 local officials vowed that they would work hard to ensure that Negros Occidental remains green (Teodoro’s).
Two mayors have openly endorsed Aquino—Mayor Alejandro Mirasol of Binalbagan and Mayor Eric Saratan of Talisay—who, sources said, was caught off-guard when actress Kris Aquino, Noynoy’s sister, cajoled him into supporting her brother. Saratan earlier signed a manifesto of support for Teodoro as well.
Villar has the support of Vice Gov. Emilio Yulo 3rd, Rep. Jeffrey Ferre (fourth district), EB Magalona Vice Mayor Rex Depasucat and Board Member Manuel Ko, among others.
Critics of Aquino were skeptical about the LP standard-bearer’s crowd-drawing power, whether it will exceed the number of people who came out to see his sister Kris who visited the province a couple of weeks ago.
Some were saying that the crowd may not be truly for Aquino, but for Roxas who remains popular in Negros Occidental and supported by most officials because of his ties to the province. Roxas’ mother, Judy Araneta Roxas, is from Negros Occidental and has vast landholdings in the province.
Jefferson Antiporda, Francis Earl A. Cueto, Ma. Ester L. Espina and Jowell Miguel T. Reodica
No comments:
Post a Comment