Nalzaro: Gwen is for Loren
GOV. Gwen Garcia and her One Cebu party will support Nacionalista Party vice presidential candidate Sen. Loren Legarda. Why? Consider this. Gwen has refused to endorse Lakas-Kampi vice presidential bet Edu Manzano even if she is supporting Manzano’s presidential candidate, Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro.
Among the vice presidential candidates, only Loren was invited by Gwen to the recent Suroy-Suroy Sugbo. Loren will also attend the opening salvo of One Cebu on March 27. That could be the time Gwen will announce her endorsement of and support for Loren. I believe One Cebu will cross party lines. What is the purpose of inviting Loren if she will not be endorsed?
What bolsters this theory is the stance of Gwen's daughter, lawyer Ma. Cristina Codilla-Frasco. Cristina has been designated as Loren's spokesperson in the Visayas and Mindanao on her advocacy for women and children's rights and welfare.
Cristina is married to Liloan Mayor Vincent Duke Frasco.
Cristina said that she is doing it on her own because she is grateful to Loren for supporting her when she experienced maltreatment. A Japanese national attacked her at the Manila airport years ago.
Also working for the senator on her advocacy for the environment is Esperanza Garcia, daughter of GSIS president/general manager Winston Garcia. The young Garcia is actively involved in the Philippine Youth on Climate Movement, a support group of Legarda.
I believe that the support of Cristina and Esperanza to Loren has the blessing of Gwen and perhaps the entire Garcia clan, which is dominating the political landscape in the province. If Gwen is not for Loren, she would not have allowed her daughter and niece to work with the senator.
One plus one equals two. It’s that simple.
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Mayor Tomas Osmeña’s health condition is still one of the issues being raised by his political opponent.
Businessman Jonathan “Atan” Guardo, who is running against the mayor in the congressional race in the city's south district, said that Tomas is now seldom seen during the nightly pulong-pulong of the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan because his health is deteriorating. Atan added that in instances when the mayor attended the pulong-pulong, he brought along a nurse to immediately attend to his medical needs.
But Tomas refuted this claim and said he is physically fit to survive the rigorous campaign. He said Guardo used the issue to discourage voters from voting for him because he is allegedly dying.
Whether Guardo’s claim is true or not, I think his camp should not hype this issue up because it might result in the mayor getting sympathy votes. We all know that Filipinos are sensitive on the issue of a person’s health. It might boomerang on them.
Recently, I received this text message presumably from anti-Tomas people: “Dear God, last year you took away my favorite singer, Michael Jackson, my favorite actor Patrick Swayze, my favorite actress, Farah Fawcett and my favorite local rapper Francis M. I just want to let you know, my Dear Lord, that my favorite politician is Tomas Osmeña.”
Pagkatoytoy!
(bobby@sunstar.com.ph/bgnalzaro@gmanetwork.com)