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Monday, January 19, 2004
Miguels vie for Sarangani guv seat
By Aquiles Zonio
IT'S Miguel versus Miguel in Sarangani Province come May election.
This after Paul Dominguez, gubernatorial bet of the Sarangani Reconciliation and Reformation Organization (Sarro), decided to withdraw from the race late Thursday.
Paul, former Presidential Assistant for Mindanao, said Friday he backed out so as not to allow the campaign to be muddled by the disqualification issue.
On the same night, the seven incumbent town mayors of the province unanimously endorsed 26-year-old Miguel Dominguez as his father's replacement.
Anecito Lopez Jr., mayor of Maasim town in Sarangani, said he is confident the younger Dominguez is a strong contender, considering that the youth represents a significant portion of the province's voting population.
Lopez added that their political adversaries could no longer question the residency status of the younger Dominguez, who headed straight to Alabel town five years ago after graduating from college in the United States.
Incumbent governor Miguel Escobar and his group filed a disqualification case against Dominguez before the local Commission on Election (Comelec) office Friday last week.
"The basis for the disqualification case against is weak. But it is expected that the case will drag on and will not be immediately decided by the Comelec considering the prevailing legal system in the country," Dominguez said.
Sarro candidates were capitalizing on the issue of corruption bugging the Escobar leadership.
Late last year, the Sarangani People's Action for Reform and Good Governance filed graft charges against Escobar, vice governor Felipe Constantino, several board members and ranking capitol employees in connection with alleged irregular disbursements of a multi-million public fund to finance ghost cooperatives and projects.
The case is now pending with the Office of the Ombudsman-Mindanao.
(January 19, 2004 issue)
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