Presidential candidate Senator Panfilo Lacson on Saturday deplored that elections in the country have been traditionally marked by a “vicious cycle of revenge between the candidates and the voters.”
“As long as money politics dominates our elections, it will be a vicious cycle of revenge between candidates and voters,” Lacson said, adding that the voters “have a field day during the campaign period and the candidates exact vengeance for three or six years of victory.”
He said the future of the Philippines and of people—not money politics—should determine the outcome of the upcoming May 9 national and local elections.
Lacson emphasized the need to vote for the most qualified leader.
He said feedback from the recent debates and other forums indicated that he was the “most knowledgeable” in governance.
“How is it that I am perceived to be the most knowledgeable in management of government, way above the rest, and yet that does not factor in the surveys? Nonetheless, I will continue to champion my track record, qualities, platforms, and standard of what the Philippines needs,” Lacson said.
On his resignation from the Partido Reporma, the senator asserted that he rejected money politics and stuck to his principles and integrity.
Lacson eventually revealed that an officer of Reporma allegedly tried to extract P800 million from him in exchange for the party’s endorsement of his candidacy.
“If I were corrupt, I could have easily produced the P800 million. But I don’t have the guts to steal or accept bribes. Nothing can ever change my principles and tarnish my integrity. This fight is not just about me and the present. It is about our country’s future,” Lacson said.