Hugpong members not in line-up can join poll campaign
-A A +ASaturday, October 13, 2012
THE lone full-fledged local political party in Davao City -- Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod -- may welcome candidates endorsed by the party during its first convention but weren't included in the party's official line-up.
Councilor Melchor Quitain, Hugpong secretary general, in Thursday's I-Speak forum at the Davao City Hall, told reporters that even the aspiring candidates for any position who were endorsed by the party during its convention and are attached to a national party, can still join the party's campaign activities.
Next year's election will be the first election for Hugpong as a recognized political party by the Commission on Election (Comelec), since it started as an informal aggrupation during the post-martial law years.
Quitain, for his part, said there has been no law prohibiting them to invite other candidates not in their line-up.
"Anyway, all these candidates who will be climbing the stage will all be espousing the same platform of Hugpong," Quitain said.
During the party's first convention held at the SMX Convention Center 1 on September 28, the party endorsed 34 names to be part of their ticket for the council race and one for the congressman position to the three districts of Davao City.
A few glitches also confronted the group as several candidates from the same clans and close relatives wanted to run in the same position under the same party.
Davao City Vice Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte earlier said that as much as possible he doesn't want several names from the same family to run coming to ensure the victory of all the candidate.
One of them is the Advincula father and son. Quitain said the party is yet to act on their running.
There were claims that the older Advincula is also running under Hugpong when it was his son, a neophyte councilor for the third district who was officially endorsed by the party.
"I am only bound to the decision made by the party directorate," Quitain said when asked of the party's latest position on the running of multiple candidates coming from the same family. JOP
Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on October 13, 2012.
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