MANILA (Updated) -- Presidential candidate Manuel Villar officially named Tuesday Senator Loren Legarda as his running mate in the 2010 presidential elections.

The Nacionalista Party (NP) standard bearer formalized his tandem with the lawmaker in a simple ceremony Tuesday afternoon at the Laurel House in Mandaluyong City. It was attended by their partymates and supporters.

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Calling the tandem a “convergence of platforms,” Villar said his decision to choose Legarda was borne out of their common desire to uplift the lives of the poor and their common vision for the country.

“Many people, including the media, were asking why it took so long before I reveal my vice presidential candidate. Good things come to those who wait,” Villar said as he praised Legarda for practicing a new kind of politics and leadership.

“We share common vision for the country. Both have found common ground in our stand in leading the country. People were asking, ‘Bakit si Loren? Bakit hindi,’” he added.

National and local officials had varied reactions to the Villar-Legarda tandem.

* Valenzuela Representative and NPC spokesman Rex Gatchalian said Legarda’s decision to team up with Villar does not mean the party will support the latter’s presidential bid.

* Presidential Adviser and Lakas-Kampi-CMD secretary general Gabriel Claudio acknowledged the “personal chemistry” and “geographical complementarity” of Villar-Legarda team up which he said makes them a “formidable” team in the 2010 elections.

* However, Claudio said the administration wish the two senators well, adding that they are not too worried about the chances of Lakas-Kampi bets Teodoro and former Optical Media Board chairman Edu Manzano as the Villar-Legarda is more of a threat to the opposition.

* Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia’s friendship with Legarda will not assure her of support from the One Cebu party.

* Representative Pablo John Garcia, the governor’s brother, admitted that Legarda is a family friend but their political support will depend on the political alliances of the party.

* Dr. Rene Josef Bullecer of the Task Force for Life and Msgr. Esteban Binghay, episcopal vicar of the Archdiocese of Cebu, said Legarda will not get the vote of the Catholics since she is a supporter of the controversial reproductive health bill.

On Tuesday, Villar, who was clad in his trademark orange polo shirt, denied reports that the tandem was a result of political accommodation as alleged by his critics but said it was forged by their common desire to eradicate poverty in the country and promote a sustainable environment.

He also praised the senator for being a staunch defender of the environment.

“This is compatible with my platform to eradicating poverty. It is the poor who suffer the most from the negative effects of environmental degradation,” he added.

Legarda, who was wearing her signature white polo and jeans, said she and Villar “share many things in common” and have the “same vision” to free the country from “poverty and despair.”

“Today, I officially declare my candidacy as vice president in the May 2010 elections. I am running in tandem with the NP’s Senator Manny Villar as a presidential standard bearer,” she said. “We do not merely promise change, we do change.”

Legarda said she will come in as a guest candidate of the NP for the 2010 elections, adding that there will be no merger between the NP and NPC but more of a shared platform for the election.

She said she received the blessing of NPC leaders to choose a standard bearer after their leading candidate Senator Francis Escudero resigned from the party last month.

Villar is president of the NP, while Legarda belongs to the NPC founded by businessman Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco.

Legarda was among those who ousted Villar from the Senate presidency in November last year.

She also supported a Senate investigation into the allegedly anomalous C-5 road extension project, involving Villar.

Last May, she chided Villar for his statement that a presidential aspirant needs at least P1 billion to run a nationwide campaign.

But Legarda made a sudden turnaround when she signed a resolution, along with 11 other senators Tuesday, seeking the dismissal of the ethics case filed against Villar.

The other senators who signed the resolution Tuesday are Senators Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, Gregorio Honasan, Aquilino Pimentel, Allan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano, Lito Lapid, Joker Arroyo, Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Ramon Revilla Jr., Jinggoy Estrada, Loren Legarda and Villar himself.

They said they signed the resolution as the witnesses of complainant Senator Jamby Madrigal failed to support the allegations of anomalies in the construction of the controversial C-5 road extension project, which Villar allegedly benefited from.

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, however, vowed Tuesday to finish the report of the Senate Committee of the Whole despite the signed resolution.

“It’s their right to express their opinion but they should have waited first for the report of the Committee of the Whole. We will come up with a committee report, and whether anybody will sign it or not, let there be a finding of the committee as a whole. Whether it will be accepted or not, that’s another question,” Enrile said in a media interview.

He added that the committee report will be released before the Christmas break, as lawyers continue to study deeper the evidence and testimonies of the witnesses during the 20 hearing sessions. (AH/JMR/With RSA and JKV of Sun.Star Cebu/PNA/Sunnex)