PDP-Laban exec insists on Pacquiao's expulsion, refutes Pimentel's take on party by-laws

PDP-Laban Secretary-General Atty. Melvin Matibag on Friday insisted that Senator Manny Pacquiao should be expelled from the ruling party based on the party’s rule on its members' allegiance to other political groups.

Matibag issued the statement to refute the interpretation of one of the authors of PDP-Laban's constitution, Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.

According to Matibag's camp, the PDP-Laban National Executive Committee is arranging a meeting on Friday to discuss Pacquiao's possible expulsion.

“Senator Koko Pimentel just admitted the existence of a People’s Champ Movement (PCM) and admitted that Sen. Manny as its President at the time Sen. Manny was inducted into PDP Laban,” Matibag said.

He cited a section of PDP-Laban Constitution, which states that the following acts may cause a member's “automatic expulsion” from the party:

• Taking an oath of membership or allegiance to another political party
• Maintaining a membership in an another political party even after induction in PDP Laban.

“In fact, Sen. Manny presided over the meeting of PCM, which passed a resolution to convert PCM from a regional political party to a national political party. Why on earth will we bluff? This is as clear as daylight validated by the statement of Sen. Koko Pimentel,” Matibag said.

GMA News has sought Pacquiao and Pimentel’s comments regarding Matibag's statement, but they have yet to respond as of posting time.

In a series of tweet Thursday night, Pimentel, an ally of Pacquiao, said the expulsion warning was a "bluff" that was meant to distract Pacquiao in his upcoming fight.

Pimentel also pointed out that the PDP-Laban constitution has always been interpreted by “knowledgeable leaders” of the party “not to prohibit membership in the party and membership in a regional political party at the same time.”

“The snapshots of documents being circulated actually show that within days of becoming PDP LABAN President, Senator Manny Pacquiao gave up the presidency of the People’s Champ Movement, a regional political party. This was an act which was not even required of him to do,” he said.

In a separate statement, PDP Laban executive director Ron Munsayac said Pacquiao’s membership to PCM is the same with PDP-Laban chairman and President Rodrigo Duterte’s membership to Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod (HTL).

“Senator Manny is just like the President Rodrigo Duterte who is likewise a member of a local party Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod (HTL) up to the present,” Munsayac said.

HTL is a a Davao-City based political organization which was registered by President Duterte as a local party with the Commission on Elections in 2011.

Munsayac said PCM maintains its status as a local and regional political party, saying Matibag and his allies in the PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, are only “peddling lies to further their malicious and baseless claims.”

On Thursday, Matibag warned Pacquiao of possible expulsion over reports that the boxer-lawmaker was converting his People's Champ Movement into a national party.

Pacquiao's spokesman former Negros Occidental Rep. Monico Puentevella denied the allegation.

According to Sandra Aguinaldo's report on "24 Oras", Pacquiao would stay with PDP-Laban even with the intramurals between the factions.

The groups of Pacquiao and Cusi have been asserting authority over the ruling party since May when the Energy chief called for a national assembly without the lawmaker's consent.

In a national assembly held by Cusi’s camp last July 17, Pacquiao’s position as PDP-Laban president was declared vacant.

The PDP-Laban members eventually voted Cusi as the party’s new president. They also voted new officers for other national positions.

Duterte, chairman of PDP-Laban, had attended the party's national assembly.

Pacquiao is currently training in the United States to prepare for his August 21 fight against Cuban Yordens Ugas.

He was supposed to face American boxer Errol Spence Jr., but the latter pulled out from the fight due to a retinal tear. —KBK, GMA News