「日刊まにら新聞」ウェブ

Opposition group, 1Sambayan, on Saturday revealed its possible presidential and vice presidential candidates for the 2022 national elections.

During the event, 1Sambayan lead convenor retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio presented the list of their six nominees.

The list includes Vice President Leni Robredo, former senator Antonio Trillanes, Sen. Grace Poe, Rep. Bro. Eddie Villanueva, lawyer Chel Diokno, and Rep. Vilma Santos-Recto.

"We, in 1Sambayan, believe that these six people all have the qualities of a leader who can give our citizens a better future and lift our country from economic ruin," Carpio said.

"We are confident that the people can choose from this list of qualified candidates who can successfully challenge whoever Duterte anoints in 2022,” he added.

The group's selection process will be an online 1Sambayan questionnaire that will be made available to its members and allied organizations, which will include choosing candidates for president and vice president, and a ranking of priority issues that should be addressed by next leaders of the country.

By the end of July, 1Sambayan said it will announce its final choice for its presidential and vice presidential candidates.

The two chosen candidates will help in the selection of candidates for the Senate.

“We hope this exercise will allow us to make one of the most important decisions for the sake of our nation," Carpio said.

"We are confident that whoever we choose as candidates for president and vice president, they will represent the common aspirations of the people behind 1Sambayan,” he added.

Carpio said Senator Nancy Binay and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno were included in their list but the two requested for their removal.

"As for Mayor Isko Moreno, we initially included him because he was also interested and we have talked to him and he said he was interested but the other day, he wrote us saying he wanted his name taken out of the list of nominees, possible candidates for president and, of course, we respect that," he said.

He said Binay, who they thought as a possible candidate for vice president, also wrote a letter to them.

Carpio also said that it is up to Senator Panfilo Lacson Jr. if he wants to join their coalition.

However, after the announcement, Poe and Villanueva thanked 1Sambayan for their inclusion.

Poe said she has no plans of running again for president while Recto said she has still no political plans for 2022 for now.

Senator Joel Villanueva also said that it is unlikely for his father to run especially after recent tragedies in their family as her mother and sister passed away last year.

1Sambayan is a broad coalition of democratic forces representing the broad spectrum of legitimate political persuasions in the Philippines.

It aims to usher in a competent, trustworthy administration in the May 2022 national elections by fielding a single slate of national candidates: president, vice president, and 12 senators. Ella Dionisio/DMS