Roxas tells allies, party-mates he will win

Despite trailing in the pre-election surveys, administration standard bearer Manuel "Mar" Roxas II on Thursday said he will win in the presidential race come May 9.

Addressing his Liberal Party party-mates and allies who gathered at Club Filipino in San Juan, Roxas said: "Magtiwala tayo sa ating mga kababayan dahil pipiliin nila ang tama. Tayo ang mananalo."

"Mananalo tayo dahil hindi tayo corrupt, mananalo tayo dahil hindi tayo astang diktador, at mananalo tayo dahil tayo ay Pilipino. Marangal tayo, disente tayo, tayo ang mananalo," Roxas added in what could be taken as potshots to his opponents.

Roxas is statistically tied with Vice President Jejomar Binay in the latest Pulse Asia survey that showed Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte pulling away from Senator Grace Poe to gain the top spot.

“Ang pinanggagalingan nila ay personal na ambisyon, yabang at takot na makulong....Kung ‘yung iba gustong maging boss, tayo ang boss natin ang sambayanang Pilipino,” he said. 

Roxas also reiterated his campaign promises from modern infrastructure to improved social services, including the addition of two million poor households as beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

“Bilang paunang hakbang, dadagdan pa natin ng dalawang milyong pamilya ang mga benepisyaryo nito. Sila ay makakatanggap ng tulong mula sa gobyerno, walang kaltas, walang kupit, walang nakaw para masiguro nila ang kinabukasan ng kanilang mga anak,” he said. 

On education, Roxas said valedictorians from all 5,900 high schools will receive P100,000 tuition fee, while the top 10 graduates of senior high school will get a P10,000 allowance as financial aid as they enter college. 

He also promised a commuter rail going to Calamba, a modern railway system which will traverse from Calamba to Bicol, a high-speed rail system in the north, improved airports and sea ports, and the decongestion of traffic in Metro Manila. 

Roxas likewise said that prices of electricity will be lower under his administration. 

“Ito ang maasahan ninio sa amin ni Leni. Kung ano ang solusyon sa problema, 'yun ang tutukan namin,” he said. 

“Hindi kami matatakot na pumunta sa frontlines, hindi kami matatakot na sumagupa sa makapangyarihang interes. Hindi photo-op, hindi pasikat, hindi siga-siga. Walang drama. Magtatrabaho kami,” Roxas said. —KBK/KG, GMA News