Former Cebu 3rd District representative Pablo John Garcia stated at a media forum on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, that he has yet to decide whether to run for office in 2028.
Garcia called on Gov. Pamela “Pam” Baricuatro and the Provincial Board to consider a tax rollback and to scrap the 10 percent environmental monitoring fee on imported sand and gravel to provide immediate relief to residents and businesses.
Questioning the reliability of social media surveys that placed him third with 18 percent support, Garcia noted that the figure does not reflect his real standing because he has not declared a candidacy or campaigned across the province.
FORMER Cebu 3rd District representative Pablo John Garcia said he has yet to decide whether to run for office in 2028, but called on the Provincial Government to consider a tax rollback to help Cebuanos.
Speaking at a media forum on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, Garcia said he is consulting people as he weighs his options. He did not say which post he might seek.
“I have not decided. I am thinking,” he said.
Doubts on social media survey
Garcia also questioned the reliability of social media surveys, including one that placed him third with 18 percent support.
“One survey came out, I was number three and I was 18 percent. I don’t believe that because for me at this point, honestly, I’d be lucky to have five percent,” he said.
He said the figure does not reflect his real standing because he has not declared a candidacy or campaigned across the province. He added that he is better known in his own district than in the rest of Cebu and that name recall does not always translate into support.
Online polls, he noted, may also include respondents who are not registered voters in Cebu.
Call for tax relief
Garcia said he has been consulting not only political leaders but also business leaders and other community figures on issues affecting their localities.
Among the concerns raised, he said, are high land taxes and the cost of sand and gravel. Difficulties faced by businesses, he noted, eventually affect workers and communities.
He said the existing tax relief measures, including property assessments and energy evaluations, are not enough and should be applied more broadly.
“I don’t think it’s sufficient. It has to be across the board. There has to be a definite reckoning point,” he said.
Garcia urged Gov. Pamela “Pam” Baricuatro and the Provincial Board to consider a tax rollback. He said it would give residents immediate relief and would be better done now than left to the next governor.
He also called for scrapping the 10 percent environmental monitoring fee on imported sand and gravel.
The 10 percent environmental monitoring fee is imposed by the Cebu Provincial Government under the Cebu Revenue Code, specifically the provision on monitoring fees for sand, gravel and other quarry resources.
Political background
Garcia, a lawyer, is a four-term representative of Cebu’s 3rd District. He served in Congress from 2007 to 2013, returned in 2019, and later served as House deputy speaker for the Visayas.
He belongs to a prominent Cebu political family. His father, the late Pablo “Pabling” Garcia, was a congressman and served as governor from 1995 to 2004. His elder sister, Gwendolyn “Gwen” Garcia, is also a former governor for 14 years.
In the 2025 elections, Garcia withdrew his reelection bid and was replaced by his wife, Karen Hope Flores-Garcia. / DPC