Truth and history are on the side of the opposition and these will be the best weapon against the administration’s bet in the May 2022 polls, opposition coalition 1Sambayan nominee and former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said on Monday, June 14.
In an interview with Politiko that was streamed live on his Facebook page, Trillanes admitted that the Duterte administration has the money, power, and machinery to win next year’s polls.
“They have everything going for them pero meron kaming pinakaweapon dito—ang katotohanan (but we have a weapon here—the truth),” he said.
“Iyong katotohanan na talagang winaldas nila iyong nakaraang limang taon na napundar ng past Aquino administration sa ekonomiya, sa iba’t ibang areas ng ating development as a democratic nation (The truth is that they wasted in the past five years what the Aquino administration built in economy and other areas in our development as a democratic nation),” he added.
“So, giniba lahat iyan ni Duterte (Duterte destroyed all of that),” Trillanes, who is now a professor, stressed.
Trillanes, a former military man and member of the Magdalo Group, said that one of the main goals of 1Sambayan is to reveal this truth to the public.
He claimed, though, that he is confident the opposition’s candidate will prevail because a lot of people have woken up from Duterte’s failed promises.
READ: Leni can beat Sara in 2022 presidential polls—Trillanes
“Nabudol-budol sila. Noong 2016, niloko sila ng tahasan. Hindi na ho makakaulit ang mga ito (They were swindled. Last 2016, they were outrightly food. They will not be able to repeat it),” the former senator said.
History on opposition’s side
Trillanes is also confident of the opposition’s chances to win against anyone the administration will field next year. After all, history is on their side.
Since 1992, no presidential candidate from the administration has won.
Trillanes said this is testament to the fact that the people are clamoring for change. “Kung palpak iyong administration mo, maghahanap sila ng bagong alternatibo (If your administration is a failure, they are going to look for a new alternative).”
Despite this, he knows there’s a tough battle ahead because the administration has the resources, money, and they “hold the local officials by their necks.”
READ: Duterte for VP in 2022? ‘Oppostion prepared for all scenarios’ — Trillanes
“Kailangan nating maniwala na kaya ito (We need to believe that we can do this), that we believe we are standing on moral high ground,” Trillanes said, but added that they are not going to relax because of the “historical event.”
The senator, however, is banking on the people to be smart and discerning enough to know about the present administration.
“So, kailangan magsuri tayo nang maayos. This time, hopefully, hindi na tayo malinlang agad sa mga budol-budol moves ng kalaban natin. Diyan po silang magaling (So, we need to be critical. This time, hopefully, we will not allow ourselves to be deceived by the swindle-like moves of our enemies. They are good at that),” he said.