NAGA CITY – With only a week remaining before the deadline for prospective candidates to file their certificates of candidacy in the local elections expires, and with only 45 days into campaigning, configurations regarding political line-ups, remain hazy and confusing.
The dealine for the filing of candidacies for local positions, including seats in the House of Representatives is on midnight of March 29, Thursday next week.
In this city, while it is true that undefeated City Mayor Jesse M. Robredo’s line-up is still not yet complete, all it takes is for him to anoint from his stable of willing and able candidates to fill up the slate even while two “new” faces, in the persons of Secretary to the Mayor Nathan Sergio and City Legal Officer Nelson Legacion, have already been making the rounds in barangay consultations with the Robredo team. Robredo needs 2 or 3 more names to complete the 10-man city council race, particularly if one or two more of the eligible re-electionist city councilors decided to call it quits or dropped from the list.
The faceless rival team of Kampi big boss, Rep. Luis R. Villafuerte, however, has up to this time remained, yes, “faceless”, saved for Jojo Villafuerte and former City Kagawad Efren Santos who have been floated anew as the likely tandem in the mayoral and vice-mayoral race.
In the gubernatorial race, incumbent CSur Gov. LRay Villafuerte of Lakas-CMD appears headed for a lopsided win because none from his father’s Kampi, or from the genuine opposition, has come out to throw their hats into the political ring.
Rep. Villafuerte has been reported to be wooing former Congressman and Tourism Secretary Eddie Pilapil to fight LRV’s estranged son, Gov. LRay.
Vice-Governor Salvio Fortuno who finally decided to run for re-election after dropping his original plan to run for congressman in the Rincondada district in favor of outgoing Buhi Mayor Diones Belza belittled the reported Pilapil gubernatorial bid saying that the latter is no match to LRay.
Fortuno who was once jeered by erstwhile political ally Rep. Villafuerte as an easy prey to Rinconada’s Rep. Nancing Alfelor, also told newsmen he found it abnormal and absurd for a father to be desperately scouting for a “warrior” to fight his own son.
Pilapil, meanwhile, has remained mum on his political plans. Allies and friends, however, suggested that Pilapil would have a better fighting chance if he ran for congressman against re-electionist Rep. Noli Fuentebella in the province’s Partido district.
The Villafuerte father and son have as early as last year parted ways and promised to field candidates against each other throughout the province with the former steering Kampi and the son keeping it up with Lakas-CMD, though both parties are allied with the administration of Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
In vote-rich Calabanga town, both incumbent Mayor Evelyn Yu and former Mayor Ruben Medroso are each claiming to be the official candidate of Rep. Villafuerte’s Kampi, throwing local party leaders and political observers into bedlam.
In Milaor town, outgoing Mayor Edgar Felizmenio will field his own wife for the top municipal post while he himself has been widely reported to slide down as his wife’s vice-mayoral partner.
This is not something new or strange in the province, however.
In Magarao, another farming town, re-electionist Mayor Unding Señar was earlier reported to be fielding as vice-mayor her own husband, Bading Señar, a former 3-termer mayor of the same town.
In Ragay, Provincial Board Member Warren Andaya Señar has been reported intending to run against the son of his father-in-law, out-going Mayor Rene Aquino for the mayoral contest there that has been interchangeably dominated by both families in recent years since the time of then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos and the advent of Pres. Cory Aquino.
More surprises are expected to spring up next week when the last days of the filing of certificates of candidacies hit the deadline.
