Edu a no-show in dzBB VP bets' interview Thursday

Administration party vice-presidential bet Edu Manzano failed to show up in a radio interview with broadcast journalist Mike Enriquez on Thursday morning, supposedly due to “conflict of schedule." Manzano was scheduled to take the hot seat in the dzBB radio show "Ikaw Na Ba: The Vice-Presidential Interview" on Thursday morning, but backed out the day before, according to Enriquez. Reli German, Manzano’s campaign manager, said in a text message to Enriquez on Wednesday afternoon that the Lakas-Kampi-CMD vice-presidential aspirant had to go to Butuan City in Agusan del Norte for a sortie "on instructions of PGMA (President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo)." In the same text message, which was read by Enriquez during his radio show, German requested for a 30-minute phone patch for Manzano instead of a live interview. Enriquez, however, said that it would be unfair for other candidates who attended the radio show in person if Manzano will be interviewed only through phone patch. “Hindi ito ‘Sorry na lang kami’ kundi ‘Sorry na lang kayo, mga Kapuso’… Ipapakilala sana namin si Ginoong Edu Manzano sa inyong aming mga tagapakinig (Manzano’s camp should not be sorry to us but to our listeners," he said in his radio show in reaction to German’s text message. Manzano was the first candidate for vice president to miss the radio interview, according to Enriquez. In a separate phone interview with GMANews.TV, German clarified that President Arroyo “had nothing to do with the change of schedule." He said the instructions to proceed to Butuan City were “from party leaders" who wanted Manzano and administration party standard bearer Gilberto Teodoro Jr. to attend a meeting with local officials there. “Nagkamali ako doon… Wala siyang [President Arroyo] kinalaman sa change of schedule. (I committed a mistake there. President Arroyo had nothing to do with the change of schedule.) Edu was in Davao last night and was scheduled to fly back to Manila at 7 p.m., but he got instructions from party leaders to go to Butuan for a meeting with local officials and a sortie with the Lakas slate," he said. German added that Mrs. Arroyo, president emeritus of Lakas-Kampi-CMD, would also be in Butuan on Thursday, but would not be attending the meeting and the administration party sortie. He apologized to the listeners on Manzano’s behalf, saying that the vice-presidential aspirant’s failure to attend the radio interview was an "unfortunate" event. "This was an unfortunate change of schedule. Nakaplano na. Nakakahiya at ikinalulungkot namin ito, pero kinailangan niyang umattend sa meeting (This interview has already been planned. We are both ashamed and saddened because of this, but Edu really had to attend that meeting)," he said. — LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV