Lawmaker: Free zone for Bacolod stays

CANDIDATES for the congressional, mayoralty, and vice mayoralty posts of Grupo Progreso–Nationalist People’s Coalition (GP-NPC) will continue to be adopted by the administration’s Liberal Party (LP) while the contest for the City Council posts remain a free zone.

According to Representative Albee Benitez, provincial chair of LP, he already answered the letter of LP Bacolod chairman emeritus Andy Hagad last week and had explained the reasons why LP national campaign manager and Senator Franklin Drilon publicly announced the endorsement of Mayor Evelio Leonardia, Vice Mayor Thaddy Sayson and Greg Gasataya for the top three posts for Bacolod and the declaration of a free zone for the City Council positions.

Benitez said it is already understandable that because of the standing coalition between the LP and the NPC, they are obliged to endorse the candidates for the top three positions in Bacolod under GP-NPC.

On the free zone declaration, Benitez said that both NPC and LP have candidates for the said positions reason why they cannot issue an official endorsement for the local LP.

Benitez explained that the stand of the LP provincial leadership would also be the stand of LP national hierarchy, particularly that of Drilon.

Hagad and several LP candidates in Bacolod protested after seeing Drilon together with senatorial candidates for Team PNoy the endorsements of Leonardia, Sayson and Gasataya and the free zone pronouncements.

Benitez assured the local coalition between NPC and LP will deliver votes for the senatorial candidates under Team PNoy for the coming polls.

He said the senatorial race between candidates of Team PNoy and the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) is very tight and the delivery of votes from Negros Occidental would also be crucial.

Benitez said that, based on the surveys, the difference between frontrunners are merely points which statistically means they are all tied.

NPC provincial chair and Kabankalan City Mayor Isidro Zayco also pointed out the need to exert extra effort to make sure the coalition would deliver votes for Team PNoy candidates. (Carla N. Canet)