Members of the Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial slate only had good things to say about their main endorser, President Marcos, on the day of their final campaign rally Friday, May 9 in Mandaluyong City.
Former senators Panfilo "Ping" Lacson, Vicente "Tito" Sotto, and ACT-CiS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo highlighted during the effort and sacrifices made by the Chief Executive during the 90-day campaign period just to get Alyansa’s message across to Filipino voters.
"I’ve never experienced, I’ve never seen or experienced ‘yong suporta na ginawa o ginagawa ni Pangulong Marcos sa slate ng Alyansa. Imagine risking his own security ‘no. Dumadalo even open areas nandoon siya, vulnerable ‘yong kanyang physical security pero nandoon pa rin siya. And he stayed with us all the way from start to finish," Lacson said in a press conference at Wack-Wack Golf and Country Club before the grand rally.
(I’ve never experienced, I’ve never seen or experienced the kind of support that President Marcos has given or is giving to the Alyansa slate. Imagine, he’s even risking his own security. He attends events even in open areas—he’s there, physically vulnerable, yet he still shows up. And he stayed with us all the way from start to finish.)
Lacson, a former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, said Marcos' support for the Alyansa ticket gave him "goosebumps".
"Alam mo kung maaalala ko ‘yong suportang binigay sa amin ng Pangulong Marcos, kinikilabutan ako. I’m having goosebumps because talagang totohanan at unequivocal ‘yong kanyang suporta sa slate...So, the mere fact na pinili kami at kinakampanya kami, napakalaking bagay para sa amin ‘yon," he shared.
(You know, when I remember the support that President Marcos gave us, I get goosebumps. I’m having goosebumps because his support for the slate was truly genuine and unequivocal... So, the mere fact that he chose us and campaigned for us is a huge deal for us.)
Sotto agreed with Lacson in that Marcos' backing of Alyansa was a "big deal". He said being handpicked by Marcos to form the slate also had its merits.
"Malaking bagay yon, malaking tulong sa amin ‘yon. Iba ‘yong Pangulo ng Pilipinas ang naniniwala sayo—napakahalaga (That’s a big deal, a huge help for us. It’s different when the President of the Philippines believes in you—it’s truly significant)," said the former Senate President.
Tulfo said that the results of recent pre-election surveys showed the impact of President Marcos' endorsements of the Alyansa bets. He said that depending on the survey, up to nine or 10 of the 11 pro-administration candidates were in position to land in the coveted "Magic 12".
"So what does it tell you? Ibig sabihin, magaling mag-kampanya ‘yong pangulo because majority ng sa kanyang line-up ay pasok doon sa Alyansa dito sa pinipili ng mga tao. Ibig sabihin tama lang ‘yong kanyang pinili," he said.
(So what does that tell you? It means the President is a great campaigner because the majority of his line-up made it into the Alyansa that is being chosen by the people. It means he made the right choices.)
"Magagaling ang mga kasama natin, may mga experience things like that. So ibig sabihin, it was a very very big factor ‘yong pangulo na kasama mo sa pangangampanya (Our team is highly skilled, with experience and expertise. So that means having the President campaigning alongside us was a very, very big factor)," added the former broadcast journalist.
The Alyansa slate's final grand rally or miting de avance will be held on Nueve de Febrero Street.