MANILA – A total of 374 aspirants filed their certificates of candidacy (COC) and certificates of nomination-certificates of acceptance of nomination (CON-CAN) for the senatorial and party-list race in next year’s midterm elections.
At the end of the eight-day candidacy filing period on Tuesday, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said the figure was composed of 184 candidates for senator and 190 party-list groups.
This included 57 senatorial bets and 53 party-list groups that beat the filing deadline at The Manila Hotel City in Manila.
Among the last-minute filers was TV host Willie Revillame, seeking to be elected senator in next year’s polls.
“Gusto nating tulungan ang mga pamilyang naghihirap, walang makain, mga batang nangangarap na makapag-aral (We want to help poor families, those who are hungry, and children who want to attend school),” the “Wil to Win” host said in an interview.
Revillame noted that he would push for free education, health care for everyone, and increasing discounts for the vulnerable sector.
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“Gusto natin libreng eskwelahan, libreng libro. Unahin ang mamamayan (We want free education, free books. The people must be prioritized),” he said.
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The host/actor said that once elected, he would not argue or engage in a debate with his fellow senators.
Instead, he added, he would sit down and talk to them in a very polite manner.
Aside from Revillame, other senatorial aspirants who filed their respective COCs were Sagip party-list Rep. Dante Marcoleta, former Commission on Audit commissioner Heidi Mendoza, detained Kingdom of Jesus Christ leader Apollo Quiboloy, former Senator Kiko Pangilinan, and former Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez.
On the other hand, Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said former Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana withdrew his COC on Tuesday.
Lorenzana filed his candidacy as an independent aspirant on Monday through a duly authorized representative.
“He cited no reason for said withdrawal,” Laudiangco added.
AFP ready to augment polls security
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), meanwhile, said it is preparing to augment the security provided by law enforcement agencies in next year’s midterm elections.
“In terms of the preparation today, we were in full swing in terms of our commitment to augment security preparations by the law enforcement agencies,” AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said in a media briefing.
She added that the AFP is focusing on this task and considering the “different challenges.”
Padilla also noted that the AFP is readying different task forces for immediate deployment at any time.
“[The] same is true all over the different regions of the Philippines. So, yun po pati po ‘yung sa BARMM elections na coming (This includes the upcoming Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao elections). We are also giving great emphasis on security preparations for that,” she added. (With Priam Nepomuceno/PNA)
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