Soriano now backs Emano

CAGAYAN de Oro former vice mayor Antonio Soriano announced Wednesday that he already resigned as Nacionalista Party (NP) coordinator to work for Vice Mayor Vicente Emano’s comeback at City Hall.

The announcement, which was emailed to local media outlets Wednesday, surprised political observers and local pundits because Soriano had cast himself as oppositionist in Emano’s nine years as mayor.

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As one of the leading opposition figures, Soriano ran and lost against Emano in the 2004 mayoral race. He remained critical when Emano became vice mayor almost three years ago.

Not surprised

Soriano’s sudden turn-around, however, didn’t come as a bombshell for the local opposition.

“We knew it beforehand that he was not with us. At least, we didn’t waste time by making the mistake of asking him to be with the opposition team in this year’s election,” said Enrico Salcedo, campaign spokesperson for Representative Rolando Uy (first district), Emano’s strongest rival in the mayoral race.

"He's (Soriano) not a loss to the opposition; he's a liability. And he has no sizable supporters, so good riddance," said Salcedo.

The feelings may be mutual, with Soriano saying he had no intention to be part with Uy’s campaign in the first place.

“I’m for Emano this time because I believe that between him and Klarex (Uy), Dongkoy (Emano) is more preferable in terms of infrastructure development and peace and order,” said Soriano.

Ready for backlash

He said he was ready for the criticisms expected of his decision to embrace a former political enemy, including suspicions that his loyalty was bought for some pieces of silver.

“I arrived at this decision by purely deciding alone; no one told me to support Dongkoy or anybody. Nor was I bought off as my principles cannot be bought,” he said.

He enumerated his reasons for supporting Emano: The alleged mismanagement of the Uys of Barangay Carmen, where Soriano a resident; Uy’s largely untested performance in public office; Emano’s “good” performance in the infrastructure area when he was mayor from 1998 to 2007.

Uy’s wife, Lorna, the barangay chairperson of Carmen, has done nothing with the garbage problem in the area, while peace and order remains a serious concern, said Soriano, adding that this was the same case when Uy was himself a barangay chairman before becoming a congressman in 2007.

In contrast, Soriano said that while Emano is hounded by corruption issues, “we have already tested him, and we’ve seen what he can do for the progress of the city.”

True color

Salcedo, who is also the barangay chairperson of Gusa, dismissed Soriano’s attacks against the Uys as “politically-motivated”.

“Tony Soriano has shown his true color. We’ve been suspecting that all along, he is working for the other camp,” he said.

Salcedo said Soriano’s “turn-coatism” had been apparent when the latter’s law firm was enlisted to defend the allegedly onerous redevelopments of the city’s markets through Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) scheme.

Soriano, a practicing lawyer, assailed this, saying the link between Emano’s allies in the business sector and his firm “doesn’t mean I have close relationships with them.”

In the case of businessman Erwin Bryan See, whose father See Hong is a known supporter of Emano, Soriano said his firm has long been involved with the Sees long before they cornered the P250 million Agora BOT deal.

Agora’s reconstruction is being challenged at the Supreme Court by the opposition, which alleges that the BOT contract gives undue advantages to the Sees.

No longer with NP

Soriano said he decided to issue a press statement to stop speculations that he is still with NP since some of the party’s sector leaders continue to call on him for political consultations.

“I have submitted my resignation albeit verbally and through text messages since my appointment as NP coordinator then was also done verbally,” Soriano added.

Soriano formerly chaired the local “Black and White Movement” apart from being member of the opposition Pilipino Democratic Party (PDP) of Senator Aquilino Pimentel.

He, however, resigned as member of the Black and White movement after its core members joined separate political parties in Manila.

He said he has also given up his membership with PDP when he ran as independent candidate for Congress in the city’s first district in the 2007 elections.

In November last year, Michael Regino, NP coordinator for Mindanao, officially named Soriano coordinator of the party in Cagayan de Oro City. (DVA)