Independent presidential candidate Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson rallied support for five senatorial candidates who stuck with him and running mate Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto III through thick and thin during the 90-day national campaign period.
Lacson urged Filipino voters to elect public health advocate Dr. Minguita Padilla, former national police chief Guillermo Eleazar, former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Piñol, and former Senators Joseph Victor ‘JV’ Ejercito and Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan II among their 12 future senators.
‘’Let us not forget about our colleagues who were with us throughout this long campaign period. They were always with us, they never quit,’’ the presidential aspirant told supporters gathered at the Verdant Square, Friday evening, May 6.
Of the five, Lacson said Eleazar would most likely inherit his role as the adversary of the corrupt government officials and agencies in the Senate, considering the similar career path they took. Both became chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) before entering politics via the legislative branch.
‘’The tough guy in the Senate... I hope we give him a chance (to continue serving) because I will be leaving the Senate. He will be my replacement to oppose those who will be abusing Congress and other agencies of our government,’’ Lacson said of Eleazar.
Eleazar vowed to continue the advocacies of Lacson and Sotto, especially in the area of public safety and peace and order.
He said that like Lacson, whom he idolized, he would also keep living by the motto of ‘what is right must be kept right, what is wrong must be set right.
“Iisa lang po ang aking panuntunan: ang tama ay tama at ang mali ay mali. Kaya pinaninindigan ko at ipinaglalaban ang tama. (I only have one standard: right is right and wrong is wrong. And I will stand up and fight for what is right),” Eleazar said in his speech.
Lacson also gave a lot of encouraging words to boost the candidacy of Piñol whom he described as a "walking encyclopedia" because of his wealth of knowledge in the field of agriculture.
He vouched for his integrity and sincerity in public service to protect the welfare and interests of agricultural workers.
Lacson reiterated that out of all secretaries who served under President Duterte, only Piñol willingly underwent an exhaustive lifestyle check for seven months, and he was cleared by the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) on all charges leveled against him.
Lacson, meanwhile, told supporters to remember Ejercito who is seeking a second term in the Senate. The former San Juan City mayor has been credited by both Lacson and Sotto as instrumental in passing the Universal Healthcare (UHC) Act during his first term as senator from 2013 to 2019.
“Ang tawag ko sa kanya (I call him) ‘the better one, the more competent one, always the better one,’” Lacson said of Ejercito, who branded himself as "the good one" in his political ads during the campaign period.
Ejercito thanked the Lacson-Sotto tandem for the trust they gave him.
He said both senators always thought about what’s best for the Filipino people throughout their years in public service.
Ejercito also thanked Lacson for helping him find the budget so that the UHC could be passed into law.
‘’I would like to thank Senator Lacson because this law (UHC) is ambitious. He was the one who helped me draw the budget just so we could push for this law, which is intended for the benefit of the people,’’ he added.
Ejercito and Dr. Padilla are expected to work together to pursue reforms in the healthcare sector if they both get elected as members of the Senate in the 19th Congress.
According to latest pre-election polls, Ejercito cracked the Top 12 in voter preference for senators.
Finally, Lacson passed the leadership of the Senate ‘Macho Bloc’ to Honasan, his mistah at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA), who co-founded the group with him and Sotto. He called Honasan an ‘authentic EDSA hero’ for his pivotal role in the 1986 People Power revolution.
“Mistah, good luck and sana ipagpatuloy mo ang ating trabaho sa Senado dahil wala na kami doon ng iyong ka-'Macho Bloc' (Mistah, good luck, and I hope you will continue our job there in the Senate because your fellow members of the ‘Macho Bloc’ won’t be there anymore),” Lacson told Honasan.
Lacson, Sotto and Honasan have close ties both personally and professionally. The former said the Macho Bloc was established not only as a nickname for their group in the Senate, but also because they were all scared of their wives.
The word "macho" may either define them as being tough guys or "machunurin" (obedient) to their wives, Lacson said in jest. The presidential aspirant ended his speech by urging the electorate to offer their votes to the future generations of Filipinos when they go to the polling precincts on May 9.
‘’We must not allow our youth, the future generations, to lose hope in our country. The Philippines has hope, Cavite has hope, Carmona has hope. There is hope in every corner of our nation as long as we make the right choices,’’ he stressed.