Ruling party leaders appear to have lost the support of their leading stalwarts in the vote-rich province of Pangasinan after Gov. Amado Espino III did not join the 41 other governors who signed a “collective statement” backing the vice presidential nomination of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Another administration party leader and a known political ally of the Espinos, former Transportation Undersecretary Thomas “Tim” Orbos, backed groups pushing for Manila Mayor Isko Moreno to run for president in the 2022 elections.
Orbos is now the lead convenor of Ikaw Muna Pilipinas, a political movement backing Moreno’s possible presidential bid.
Both Espino and Orbos ran under the PDP-Laban banner in the 2019 midterm elections. Orbos, however, lost to Arnold Celeste for the congressional seat representing Pangasinan’s first district.
“It was really surprising and unusual that Espino, who is the sitting PDP-Laban governor in Pangasinan, did not sign the ‘collective statement’ supporting the decision of President Duterte to run for vice president in next year’s polls,” said an influential political leader in Region 1.
A PDP-Laban party insider also lamented that it was also puzzling why Espino III did not lend his signature to the collective statement considering that his father, former Rep. Amado Espino Jr, is the chairman of PDP-Laban in Pangasinan.
The elder Espino ran and lost to Ramon Guico III in the last elections for the province’s 5th district congressional seat. Guico recently announced his intention to run against the younger Espino for Pangasinan governor in next year’s polls.
In their collective statement, at least 41 governors hailed Duterte’s decision to accept the nomination to run for vice president next year, in tandem with Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go as PDP-Laban’s standard bearer.
The governors said the administration’s gains must continue, and that Duterte is best-positioned to guide the next president, particularly in the fight against illegal drugs and the government’s COVID-19 response.
In the last presidential elections in 2016, Pangasinan—home to 44 municipalities and four cities—delivered the third biggest number of votes among the country’s 81 provinces, next only to Cebu and Laguna.
In neighboring Cagayan Valley, political leaders of the Ikaw Muna Pilipinas movement said they believe Moreno is the right leader to lead the country, given his stellar performance as local chief executive of Manila. They endorsed Moreno for presidency in next year’s polls, saying he is “the most suitable for the position.
In addressing the more than 200 Cagayan Valley leaders during the series of consultations, Orbos underscored how Moreno was both effective and efficient in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A leader must possess qualities like compassion toward the people. A leader must be one who fulfills his promises not just through words but also action, among others. What he did and is still doing in Manila is from his heart, from his desire to help the people of Manila. I hope that he can do the same for the nation,” Orbos said, in his virtual message.
“It’s not about believing in him, although I believe in him. It’s more of how he made us believe in ourselves, how he made Manileños believe in themselves that they can overcome. That’s very important especially at this time when we do not know where the road will lead us,” he added.