LP not giving up on Mar-Poe tandem

The Liberal Party hasn’t given up on courting Senator Grace Poe to run alongside Interior Secretary Mar Roxas as vice president even if the neophyte lawmaker has emerged as the frontrunner in pre-election popularity polls for presidentiables, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said Tuesday.

 

“I think it’s (Roxas-Poe tandem) is possible,” Belmonte said in a text message.

 

The Speaker, who is a vice chairperson of the Liberal Party, said Roxas and Poe will become the tandem to beat if ever they decide to run together under the administration banner.

 

“That will be a formidable and winning team,” he said.

 

Belmonte’s remarks came after a day after he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that Poe’s victory as president will be “unstoppable” unless Roxas does something to shore up his dismal survey ratings.

 

“All his (President Aquino’s) candidates, particularly Mar, are qualified and give effective, honest government that will make a difference. But Mar should prove his winnability, by a dramatic increase in ratings… Otherwise, Grace will be another P-Noy, unstoppable,” Belmonte told the newspaper.

 

Since last year, Roxas has lagged behind Poe and Vice President Jejomar Binay in popularity polls conducted by survey firms involving possible presidential contenders.

 

Work harder

 

In the Speaker’s defense, his nephew, Quezon City Rep. Jose Christopher “Kit” Belmonte, clarified the LP executive’s statement was not a veiled statement of support for Poe’s possible run for the presidency.

 

The younger Belmonte said his uncle only wanted to prod both Roxas and the LP to work double time to improve his popularity among voters so that his chances of winning the elections will also increase. 

 

“Kung gusto mong maging Presidente si Secretary Mar, magtrabaho kayo. Personal opinion ko yun. Hindi niya ibig sabihin, wala nang mangyayari kay Mar. At this point, kung walang nagtatrabaho at this point, unstoppable talaga si Poe…” Kit said. 

 

The Speaker’s nephew said it is far-fetched for the senior Belmonte to come out in open support of Poe’s possible presidential bid since aside from being a ranking member of the LP, he also leads the House majority coalition composed of various political parties.

 

“The House is a coalition, it’s run by so many parties. [Speaker Belmonte] is a leader of the LP… Hindi gagawin ni Speaker na, ‘Poe ako.’ He has to lead the House together,” Kit said.

 

Like the younger Belmonte, Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said the Speaker’s statement was only a message for Roxas to work harder.

 

“The Speaker’s statement is a challenge for Sec. Mar. However, I sincerely believe he’s (Roxas) a winnable candidate,” he said.

 

Roxas still top pick

 

For his part, LP vice chair for political affairs Caloocan City Rep. Edgar Erice believes Belmonte’s statement only means he believes in Roxas’ qualifications as President Aquino’s potential successor.

 

“It’s good that the Speaker believes Mar is the most qualified to be president. That’s why it’s important to gain the necessary experience so she can continue the ‘Daang Matuwid’ after 2022,” he said.

 

Asked about the status of LP’s efforts to convince Poe to become Roxas’ running mate, Erice said: “Let’s leave that to Pres. Aquino. Anyway, they’re still talking.”

 

Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas, a long-time LP member, maintained that Roxas remains the administration’s presumptive presidential candidate even if he has yet to declare his political plans.

 

"As far as we're concerned, Secretary Roxas is still the presumptive candidate of the LP. An overwhelming majority of the LP members believe in his winnability. We’ll push for him to become our standard bearer,” he said.

 

While Tupas acknowledged that some of his party mates might switch to other parties in the run-up to the 2016 elections, he said Aquino is working hard to keep the administration coalition intact by holding a dialogue with Poe and Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, who both ran as independents under the administration coalition in 2013.

 

"There's an effort on the part of the party to keep the coalition intact, but the political reality is we couldn’t say if it would remain whole,” he said.

 

Last week, Aquino met with Poe and Escudero to discuss the possibility of having a united ticket for the 2016 polls. The lady senator, however, said “no specific commitments or positions” were mentioned during the meeting.

 

“We will meet again as part of a continued consultation process,” Poe told reporters in a text message.  — ELR, GMA News