Tolentino on withdrawing poll protest vs. de Lima: Eleksyon na eh

Former Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs Francis Tolentino maintains that he was a victim of election fraud in the 2016 Senate race even if he already withdrew his poll protest against Senator Leila de Lima.

Tolentino was referring to the 2016 elections wherein former Justice Secretary Leila de Lima beat him for the 12th and last Senate seat by over a million votes.

De Lima, in a statement on Tuesday, hit Tolentino for constantly claiming in campaign stops that she cheated her way to the Senate in 2016, and said Tolentino is hallucinating.

Tolentino however, shot back at De Lima.

“Siya ang nagha-hallucinate. Hindi nga siya nag-file ng counter protest eh,” Tolentino told reporters.

Asked why he withdrew his protest against de Lima’s 2016 victory, Tolentino said, “Eleksyon na eh.”

Existing laws prohibit Tolentino from running for the Senate in the May 2019 polls if he will not withdraw his 2016 poll protest against de Lima.

De Lima, for her part, said in a statement that Filipinos deserve someone way better than Tolentino.

“Filipinos deserve someone sane. If you were so sure you won, why did you withdraw your protest?” said de Lima, who is still detained in Camp Crame over drug-related charges that she also denied. —KG, GMA News