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Friday, June 03, 2005
Members set to abandon Lakas en masse: solon
By Jeanette P. Malinao
CEBU CITY -- A mass resignation from the administration party Lakas is impending, and Representative Clavel Asas-Martinez, Lakas district chairman of the fourth district, said she couldn't blame them.
Cebu mayors' league president Ronald Allan Cesante told Sun.Star Cebu Thursday they are now doing a headcount of administration party members, with the general sentiment that Lakas was "hard" on all of them in the last elections.
The campaign for the 2004 polls saw two factions of Lakas: those who belong to the group of former governor Pablo Garcia and those who sided with former congressman Celestino "Junie" Martinez Jr.
In a telephone interview, Clavel said that with Lakas, "nobody knows what's up" as it is now "a merry mix."
"So what does it mean to be Lakas? It's just a word with no meaning and no strength. It doesn't mean anything as long as you're strong in your own district, as long as you're king in your own kingdom," she said.
When asked if she will remain with Lakas, Clavel said, "This is my last term, I will wait and see."
Provincial Board (PB) Member Victor Maambong, also from the sixth district, earlier raised the issue that Lakas is useless and is not functioning to guide members on party principles.
Maambong said he will leave Lakas, and that local leaders might as well form their own group.
PB Member Gabriel Luis Quisumbing of the sixth district, however, said he will remain a Lakas member.
Quisumbing's last-minute appointment as Lakas candidate in the May 2004 elections, despite existing appointments for PB slots, was one incident of "deception" Lakas members cited.
"That's their personal sentiment and they are allowed to express it. We'll just wait if they decide to push through and resign. I'll remain a member of Lakas and will continue to work for the good of Cebu. If they choose to switch, it's their freedom and I'll respect it," Quisumbing said.
"I am satisfied with Lakas, so far," he said.
Governor Gwendolyn Garcia has also said there's a need to consolidate forces to take the battle for a united Cebu, which is in grave danger of being split up into four provinces because of "some old, selfish politicians."
The new group to be formed, she said, will redefine politics and will represent a new breed of public servants.
Cesante, for his part, said Thursday Lakas has been hard on its members in Cebu in the last elections: "Way klaro. We are contemplating of leaving Lakas."
Cesante has majority of Cebu's 47 town mayors, and some of those who were previously in the opposition are also now with his group.
President Arroyo, titular head of the party, also refused to intervene or mediate in the local dispute, allowing her members to continue the clash even after the polls.
Original Lakas members even had to face opponents that were supposedly fielded also by the administration party. (Sun.Star Cebu/Sunnex)
(June 3, 2005 issue)
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