AFTER visiting several urban poor communities in the south district last Friday, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña admitted that not everybody wants him to be their congressman.

But if he decides to seek the post, his wife and sister believe he is well enough and can physically handle an election campaign after his battle with urinary bladder cancer.

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Osmeña will be out of the country for two weeks starting today, and said he does not have to make a decision on his political plans before he leaves.

He will visit Bogota, Colombia for five days via Houston, Texas to check the city’s Bus Rapid Transit system, which he plans to replicate here. From Bogota, he will return to Houston for his scheduled post-operation checkup at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Energy

The mayor’s wife, Margot, and sister Maria Victoria “Minnie” Osmeña, said they don’t think the daily visits to the barangays would affect his health, since he knows when to take a break.

Margot said that her husband feels better and has not been feeling any pain after his surgery last April 2.

Osmeña, 60, is scheduled to have a CT Scan, X-ray and blood tests at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center next week to make sure that his urinary bladder cancer did not recur.

“That’s what the tests are for, to check if the cancer cells came back. But so far, there is no pain, he has no complaint,” Margot told Sun.Star Cebu.

When asked if the mayor is well enough to start visiting the barangays in preparation for a possible candidacy, she said that her husband can handle campaign activities.

“If there’s anything that’s different, it’s his energy level. Sometimes he’s not fully charged but he has no problem going around because he always knows when to stop,” the first lady said.

Osmeña said yesterday that he has not decided yet whether or not he will run for the south district’s congressional seat.

“I’m not campaigning, I just like going to the barangays. It all depends on what the Cebuanos want. If they want me to run, then I will run but if they don’t want to, why should I run?” the mayor told reporters at the Cebu City Sports Center yesterday afternoon.

After visiting urban poor communities in Barangays Duljo Fatima and Mambaling last Friday, Osmeña said he observed that not everyone wants him to run for congressman.

“Some people don’t like it, some people like it, they have different reactions. (Businessman Jonathan) Guardo doesn’t like it because he’s concerned about my health... But you know, in politics, don’t make a decision until you have to make a decision,” the mayor said.

Titles

Minnie, who has helped the mayor in all his previous campaigns, said she will help her younger brother again if he decides to run to make sure the campaign will not take a toll on his health.

Meanwhile, the mayor said that Guardo should look at the titles of the South Road Properties (SRP) to know that not one square meter belongs to him or his family.

Guardo, who is the opposition’s likely bet for the south district’s congressional race, earlier said that the mayor wants an Osmeña to be the congressman to protect the SRP, which has become “a family enterprise.”

“He’s running out of issues that’s why he’s becoming malicious. If I don’t bring in investors to the SRP, they criticize me for it and when I do, they’ll say I’m getting kickbacks from investors. Why don’t they make up their mind? Whatever I do is for the good of Cebu City,” the mayor said.