PDP Laban bets tell voters: There's only 10 of us

Candidates of Duterte-backed Partido ng Demokratiko Pilipino Lakas ng Bayan (PDP Laban) maintained that only ten of them have been officially endorsed by the political party despite the individual endorsements made by Vice President Sara Duterte and Senator Robin Padilla of other senatorial candidates.

In a Facebook live, senatorial candidate Atty. Raul Lambino emphasized the term “DuterTEN,” referring to the 10 official bets of PDP Laban. He said it is up to the voters to decide which two other candidates to vote for to complete the magic 12.

“DuterTEN kasi sampu po kaming kandidato ng PDP Laban at kami lamang ang sampu na inendorso ni Tatay Digong. Ang sundan natin dito ay kung ano sinabi ni Tatay Digong, sampu lamang po ‘yan,” he said.

(We’re DuterTEN because there are only ten of us endorsed by Tatay Digong. Let’s only follow what Tatay Digong said—we’re only ten candidates.)

Singer-lawyer Jimmy Bondoc, meanwhile, pointed out the difference between an “endorsement” and “official endorsement.”

“Ang official endorsement ay dumaan sa proseso sa partido, at totoong gusto ipaboto sa inyo ng mga leader natin. Ang hindi official endorsement ay bunga na maraming posibleng dahilan: political accommodation, honest personal preference, political contingency,” he said.

(An official endorsement went through the process of the political party, and these are the candidates our leaders really want you to vote for. An unofficial endorsement is a result of many possible reasons: political accommodation, honest personal preference, political contingency.)

Atty. Jayvee Hinlo also urged supporters to vote straight for the 10 of them, and no longer vote for two others so none of the official PDP Laban candidates will lose.

Sagip party-list Representative Rodante Marcoleta, in a campaign sortie in Naic, Cavite, also told supporters to vote only for PDP Laban senatoriables to block efforts to impeach the Vice President and to bring her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, back to the Philippines.

Rodrigo Duterte is currently detained at the Scheveningen Prison in The Hague, Netherlands for charges of crimes against humanity for the extrajudicial killings during his administration's war on drugs.

Sara Duterte, on the other hand, was impeached by the House of Representatives in February. The start of her impeachment trial at the Senate is scheduled in the latter part of July.

Meanwhile, Dr. Richard Mata, who was just recently added in PDP Laban’s senatorial slate, said that the “best revenge” for what is happening to the Duterte family is to vote for the 10 official PDP Laban candidates.

“The best revenge is vote straight Duter-Ten only. Focus sa bago. Wag sa lumang sikat na tahimik na kasanib ng nag kulong kay Tatay Digong,” he said.

(Focus on the new ones, not on the old and famous who were secretly behind the imprisonment of Tatay Digong.)

To recall, VP Sara endorsed the reelection bid of presidential sister and Senator Imee Marcos weeks after she withdrew from the administration's senatorial ticket.

Imee Marcos was also endorsed by Senator Robin Padilla, who sits as president of PDP-Laban. Aside from her, Padilla also endorsed former senator Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan II.

Photos of Alyansa senatorial bet and Las Piñas Representative Camille Villar — apparently in an endorsement shoot with the Vice President and Camille’s father, former Senate President Manny Villar — also made rounds online.

Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas' campaign manager and Navotas Representative Toby Tiangco had said that the 11-man senatorial line-up of the Marcos administration is "intact" despite individual endorsements from various national and local officials. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News

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