MANILA, Philippines—The Lakas-Kampi-CMD administration party is betting that the Nationalist People’s Coalition will not support a single candidate for president and instead will give its members a free choice in the 2010 elections.
Lakas-Kampi deputy secretary general Raymundo Roquero told the Inquirer that this policy would benefit the party’s standard bearer, former Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, a former NPC member and nephew of the party’s founder, Eduardo ``Danding’’ Cojuangco Jr.
“His former allies from NPC can now join him in his presidential bid without fear of getting cut from the party,’’ said Roquero in a phone interview.
Teodoro chose former Optical Media Board chair and television host Edu Manzano as his running mate last Friday to give his presidential bid a much-needed popularity boost.
“The choice of Edu has given members something to get excited about,’’ said Roquero.
NPC was supposed to field a complete national ticket in 2010 until its standard bearer, Sen. Francis Escudero, decided to quit the party two weeks ago, leaving the vice presidential bet Sen. Loren Legarda in search of a standard-bearer.
While Escudero has yet to decide whether to pursue his presidential ambition as an independent, a number of NPC members have declared that they would still support the 40-year-old lawmaker in 2010.
But Isabela Rep. Georgidi Aggabao denied that the party has already decided to allow its members a free hand in picking their presidential bets. He said the NPC’s top brass was scheduled to hold a meeting next week to decide whom to support in 2010.
Valenzuela Rep. and NPC spokesperson Rex Gatchalian said the consultation process was still going on and the party has not yet come up with a final policy.
“All options are still being considered; we have not ruled out anything. Our members have agreed to hold off making any individual commitments to support any presidential candidate until we have come up with a consensus,’’ said Gatchalian.
Roquero said that Lakas-Kampi had tried to forge an alliance with NPC for the 2010 polls (by wooing Legarda) but the NPC refused to be tied to the administration. But Roquero said that an NPC policy to give its members a free choice was the ``next best thing’’ for the administration.
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