CLARK, Pampanga—The ruling Liberal Party’s standard bearer, Manuel Roxas II, on Monday admitted conducting a “loyalty check” on the party’s members less than two weeks before this year’s elections.
Despite the decision of some LP members to support his rivals, Roxas said, he was confident the party leaders would stick with him.
“You know, the loyalty check… is going on. If you are a believer, you will believe. I’m a believer. I remain with the straight path,” Roxas said.
Some party leaders, including Aquino classmate Albay Gov. Joey Salceda, have expressed their support for Roxas’ rival Senator Grace Poe and her vice presidential candidate Francis Escudero.
“People will stay with you or will leave you,” Roxas said.
“You are either a believer or you are not. You are either [an] opportunist or not.”
Roxas also reiterated his dare to Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte to back out of the presidential race for saying his constituents were not receiving help from PhilHealth during the last presidential debate in Dagupan City on Sunday.
“The data is already complete. We proved that in Davao City alone, the amount of [PhilHealth] reimbursements last year is 2.8 billion pesos, [and] even PhilHealth general manager Alex Padilla even confirmed this.”
During Sunday’s presidential debate, Duterte said Roxas was lying about the health insurance program of the Aquino administration because he had not heard of any Davaoeño who had been able to avail themselves of it.
Roxas then challenged him to back out of the presidential race if he could prove that he was not lying.
“I dare you. If I can show you a person, a name, a hospital that has really helped Davao City, will you back out of the race?” he said.
Roxas denied the claims circulating in the internet that he was told about the questions by ABS-CBN that hosted the last leg of the presidential debates held in Pangasinan.