Some political heavyweights formally join the 2025 senatorial race on Wednesday. But despite their presence, it’s still overall a slow day with a few surprises, like the appearance of an internet celebrity.
MANILA, Philippines – The same old surnames that dominated the Senate in the past decades are the most high-profile politicians to file their candidacies with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday, October 2.
The second overall filer of the day at the Manila Hotel Tent City in Manila is Senator Imee Marcos, who was accompanied by her two sons and mother, former first lady Imelda Marcos.
The administration coalition of her brother President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has included her in his senatorial lineup for 2025, but the elder sister has declined to be part of that ticket.
Senator Imee asserted that her withdrawal from the administration coalition is meant to avoid being caught in the middle once political opponents ramp up the mudslinging during campaign season.
“My brother told me it’s okay, he will still support me. From my end, we never really fought. We don’t engage in heated arguments. I believe I’d be able to help him more if I don’t put him in a delicate spot,” she said in Filipino.
Senator Lito Lapid, as well as his former colleagues Tito Sotto and Ping Lacson, all submitted their candidacy papers at the same time.
Sotto said he is running again to push for his pet legislation on government rightsizing, outlawing “fake news,” and the shift to a hybrid election system.
Asked whether he would seek the Senate presidency if elected, the former Senate president said: “Well, who am I to say no? The important thing is that you serve at the pleasure of your colleagues.”
Lacson said it was Sotto, his 2022 running mate, who convinced him to return to politics after his failed bid for the presidency two years ago.
“Should I be given again the mandate to return to the Senate, I do not have to reinvent myself. I pledge to continue not availing of the pork barrel allocations in any shape or form. I will continue being a vanguard, if you will, of the annual national budget,” Lacson said.
Lapid skipped the question and answer format with the media, but in his opening speech touted his 18 years in the Senate on top of his experience in local government.
“I think with my experience, you will allow me to serve again,” Lapid said.
‘Diwata’ surprise
In the party-list race, notable aspirants that filed the nomination papers of their representatives include United Senior Citizens and Abono, which both have active seats in the House, as well as Magdalo and A Teacher, two groups that had won in numerous election cycles in the past, but lost the most recent one in 2022.
“If we win, and based on the constitutional violations I see, there’s a huge possibility I will file an impeachment complaint against the Vice President [Sara Duterte],” said former congressman and Magdalo 1st nominee Gary Alejano, who believes their loss in 2022 was partly due to the attacks they endured under the presidency of the Vice President’s father, Rodrigo Duterte.
“Some of my crowdsourcing sense they slightly did not feel [the presence of] the Vice President,” A Teacher 1st nominee Julieta Cortuna also said of the country’s second highest official when asked to evaluate Duterte’s performance as education secretary.
The former congresswoman added that the changes in the basic education curriculum have burdened teachers, and she wants it reviewed if her group gets a House seat.
Also a scene stealer during Wednesday’s filing was social media personality “Diwata” (Deo Balbuena in real life), who is listed as fourth nominee of the new party-list group Vendors.
Balbuena amassed huge following online and offline due to his food business that serves pares, a Filipino braised beef stew dish.
Will he give pares in Congress if his group wins? “Why not, if they want to? We’ll offer unlimited rice and free soft drinks there,” Balbuena joked.
It is important to note that fourth nominees rarely get a seat in Congress since a party-list group is only allowed a maximum number of three seats in the House. If the group wins three seats, which is difficult, one of them has to withdraw their nomination in order for “Diwata” to get a seat.
Overall, the second day of filing was slower than the previous day, as only 10 senatorial aspirants filed their candidacies on Wednesday, compared to the 17 aspirants on Tuesday.
For party-list groups, 11 submitted their documents on Wednesday, raising the running total to 26. – Rappler.com
