The Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban) faction led by Senator Manny Pacquiao is not keen on supporting the vice presidential bid of President Rodrigo Duterte.
As far as their regular consultations with other party members, Ron Munsayac, a PDP-Laban stalwart who sides with Pacquiao and Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, said Duterte does not represent the values and principles of the party anymore.
“Because, this is based on our regular consultations, he does not represent the values of the party anymore, which is about basic humanism, enlightened nationalism, consultative and participatory democracy. They do not represent the values of the party anymore,” Munsayac said in a virtual interview with reporters.
“He (Duterte) and his group does not represent the values of the group anymore,” he reiterated.
Munsayac is referring to the President and Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi who leads the other faction of PDP-Laban. On Wednesday, Cusi’s faction declared Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go and President Duterte as their official presidential and vice presidential candidate in the upcoming May 2022 elections.
Cusi’s group also proclaimed their eight senatorial candidates in the upcoming May 2022 polls which include Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Secretary Salvador Panelo, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Rep. Lucy Torres-Gomez, Secretary Harry Roque, Jr., Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar, Chairman Greco Belgica, and Rep. Rodante Marcoleta.
Munsayac, however, said the Pacquiao faction finds the national convention organized by Cusi as “strange” saying it is “one of the rare times that a political party nominated a candidate for president but declined the nomination.”
While Duterte accepted the nomination, Go, again, declined the nomination. Pacquiao's camp believes that part of Cusi's group's plan would be to support a presidential candidate outside of the party.
“So sabi nga ng mga kapartido natin, para saan yung pag-hijack nila sa Partido natin (So our partymates were asking, why did they have to hijack our party)?” he said.
At this point, Munsayac said Cusi’s group and the rest of the political appointees who are running the other faction of the political party should stop manipulating the processes and just respect Senator Go’s decision.
“In fairness sa kanya, marami din siyang kailangan trabahuhin sa kanyang komite sa Senado at sinabi naman niya yan sa sulat niya sa inyo (He also has a lot of work in his committee in the Senate and he said that in his letter to them). So let’s just respect his decision,” Munsayac said.
The party official also downplayed the senatorial candidates proclaimed by Cusi’s group saying the first four names they declared their official bets were not even long-time PDP-Laban members.
“I cannot speak for the adopted candidates, I can only say about the supposed four PDP-Laban senatoriables. Hindi po talaga mga PDP-Laban yung mga yun. In fact nakita po natin, kaka-oath lang nila dun sa previous event, a month or two months ago. (they’re not really members of the PDP-Laban. In fact, they just took their oath during the previous event, a month or two months ago),” he said.
“Baka nga po pag hahamunin ko sila at tanungin kung ano yung history at pinaglalaban at prinsipyo ng ng PDP-Laban sa apat na senatoriables nay un e baka po wala silang masagot (I might even challenge these four senatoriables and ask about the history, values and principles of the PDP-Laban and I’m sure they won’t be able to answer),” Munsayac said.