Jojo Ochoa joins Mar Roxas’ campaign in Bulacan

MALOLOS—Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. on Tuesday went on the campaign trail as he joined the sortie of former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and other candidates of the Daang Matuwid coalition.

Ochoa's presence at the Bulacan Sports Complex was acknowledged both by Roxas and President Benigno Aquino III, who also attended the event.

Undersecretary Manuel Quezon III of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) earlier said that the Aquino's allies are "solid" behind Roxas.

“I believe that the ruling coalition is solid and...in fact, dahil tinatanong ito, nagpapatunay na kinakabahan ang ating kalaban,” Quezon said.

Ochoa's father was a former mayor of Pulilan and a close friend of President Benigno Aquino's father, the late Senator Benigno Aquino Jr.

Ochoa is identified with the so-called Samar group, one of two factions in President Benigno Aquino III's campaign in 2010.

The factions of Aquino supporters, including the Balay group identified with Roxas, is widely perceived to have continued even when Aquino was already in Malacañang.

The Samar group is believed to have supported eventual winner Vice President Jejomar Binay in 2010, instead of Aquino's running mate Roxas.

Binay beat Roxas by a margin of 700,000 votes. -NB, GMA News