Vice presidential candidate Francis Pangilinan said he is willing to withdraw his candidacy to give way to a stronger running mate who can help boost the chances of Vice President Leni Robredo in next year’s presidential race.
In an interview with ANC, Pangilinan said he will consider being replaced if one of the presidential contenders decides to slide down to run in tandem with Robredo.
“If that will secure the chances of Vice President Leni in terms of her getting the votes of the candidate who will slide down, if it will improve her chances at winning, then we are open to that,” Pangilinan said.
“But if sliding down will hurt our chances more than help it, of course, we will not allow her chances to be undermined,” he added.
Meanwhile, Pangilinan said candidates in the upcoming elections should focus on COVID-19 instead of being preoccupied with political colors.
“Our problem is not colors. Our problem is COVID. Unless we contain COVID and manage it with interventions, everything else will remain stagnant,” he said in response to queries on Robredo’s decision to use the pink color instead of the Liberal party’s trademark yellow.
“For me, talks about colors should be stopped. Let us talk about problems related to COVID and their solutions,” he added.
According to a second quarter SWS survey, some 4.2 million Filipinos experienced hunger in May 2021.
Recent data from the Philippine Statistics Authority also showed unemployment ballooned to almost 3.9 million in August—nearly a million more than the July record of 3.07 million.