President
Aquino’s choice of a winnable standard bearer for the 2016 presidential polls
would make or break the ruling Liberal Party, a lawmaker warned yesterday.
AKO
BICOL partylist Rep. Rodel Batocabe, spokesperson of the 39-member Party-list
Coalition Foundation Inc. (PCF), said Mr. Aquino as LP chairman should
prudently choose the party’s standard bearer because failure to do so would put
the LP in a losing end.
“The
fate of LP as the dominant party will certainly depend not as to who will it
supports but if its candidate will win the 2016 elections. If its candidate
wins, we can all be assured that the LP will be dominant. If it loses, you can
be assured that almost everybody will jump from a sinking ship,” he said.
He
said the so-called “massive political migration” might be visibly seen as the
the filing of certificate of candidacy (CoC) in October nears.
“It
is still too early to tell. Wait until the last quarter of this year and the
realignment of forces will slowly becoming more clear and defined,” Batocabe, a
lawyer said.
1-BAP
party-list Rep. Silvestre “Bebot” Bello III, a member of the House minority
bloc said he will not be surprised if Mr. Aquino’s LP will collapse in the
coming months.
“About
75 percent of the LP membership came from Lakas and other political parties. With
the President becoming a lame duck President, the political world will witness
another massive political migration! What else is new,” the former Justice
secretary pointed out.
The
LP maintained that it remains stronger and will continue to play a crucial role
in charting the country’s future beyond 2016 amid speculations that the
administration party is breaking apart due to differences on their standard
bearer in the next year’s elections.
The
party’s presumptive presidential candidate remains Interior Secretary Mar
Roxas.
Photo
- COMPLETING THE PICTURE? — Framed against the images of two former presidents
and flanked by President Aquino after taking his oath as Interior and Local
Governments secretary in 2012, Manuel ‘Mar’ Roxas II is widely believed to be
set on launching a bid for the presidency in 2016 by quitting DILG in June to
prepare for a political showdown with Vice President Jejomar C. Binay. (MB
Archives)
Manila Bulletin
Manila Bulletin