The administration-backed Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas slate has postponed its two big rallies this week, and the supposed reason has to do with giving way rather than purposely avoiding a political face-off.
Alyansa explains why it postponed 2 rallies
Mar 25, 2025 11:10 AM
At a glance
Navotas City lone district Rep. Toby Tiangco (Facebook)
The administration-backed Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas slate has postponed its two big rallies this week, and the supposed reason has to do with giving way rather than purposely avoiding a political face-off.
Alyansa campaign manager Navotas City lone district Rep. Toby Tiangco revealed to campaign trail reporters on Tuesday night, March 25 why its scheduled rallies in Bulacan and Pampanga this coming weekend had to be deferred.
"Some Alyansa candidates have been invited to attend local proclamation rallies, which are typically held on Fridays and Saturdays. With the start of the local campaign on March 28, they’ve received multiple invitations they wish to accommodate," Tiangco said in a statement.
"In response, we decided to postpone our scheduled rallies to give way to these local events and allow candidates to engage directly with local leaders and communities," he said.
The Bulacan rally was originally slated on Friday, March 28; while the Pampanga rally was planned to be held on the next day, Saturday, March 29.
Comprising the Alyansa slate are former Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III; former Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary Benhur Abalos; former Senators Panfilo Lacson, Manny Pacquiao; Senators Pia Cayetano, Lito Lapid, Imee Marcos, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., Francis Tolentino; Makati City Mayor Abby Binay; House Deputy Speaker Las Piñas City lone district Rep. Camille Villar; and House Deputy Majority Leader ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo.
Friday is expected to be an eventful day for two reasons: first, it marks the start of election campaign period for local candidates; and second, it will be filled by protest actions from pro-Duterte demonstrators.
The 80th birthday of the incarcerated former president Rodrigo Duterte falls on March 28, and reports have indicated that supporters are being mobilized for huge rallies all over the country.
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With the ex-president's popularity still proving to be formidable, there will inevitably be comparisons between pro-Duterte rallies and Alyansa rallies if these were held on the same day.
But as per Tiangco's explanation, the President Marcos-endorsed senatorial bets were simply looking forward to linking up with local allies as the campaign trail goes deeper into the grassroots.
The biggest attendance for a rally that Alyansa has drawn so far in six weeks of campaigning has been the 100,000 crowd it had in Tacloban, Leyte last March 15.