Backpacks, bottled water banned from the Duterte-led PDP-Laban sortie in Cebu on Sunday

Just over a year ago, workers, on Nov. 15, 2017, were assembling the stage for the mass oath-taking on Nov. 17, 2017 of local officials who have shifted En masse to the now dominant political party, PDP-Laban. On Sunday, Feb. 24, 2019,  the same venue will host  the first major political rally in Cebu this year, with President Rodrigo Duterte expected to endorse his party’s senatorial slate and local candidates for the May 13, 2019 midterm elections.  /CDN File Photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Backpacks, bottled water and pens or pencils will not be allowed inside Plaza Independencia in downtown Cebu City during Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) sortie this Sunday, February 24.

Office of the Presidential Assistant to the Visayas (Opav) spokesman Titus Borromeo said the ban on these items was based on the instruction of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) for the safety of the President Rodrigo Duterte, who will be attending the political activity, and the other attendees.

“We have to tell the public to especially avoid bringing these items. Also for photojournalists, the PSG particularly asked to avoid flying of drones,” Borromeo told reporters Thursday, February 21.

The PDP-Laban Cebu campaign rally, which will be held starting at 2 p.m. inside Plaza Independencia, will be the first and might be the only campaign activity that the President will be doing in Cebu until the May 13, 2019 midterm elections.

Borromeo said that the administration’s senatorial and local candidates will benefit a lot from the presence and endorsement of President Duterte given his high trust rating in  recent surveys.

“Knowing the President’s hectic schedule, this might be the only campaign sortie of the President for Cebu. But wa ta kahibawo kung mobalik ba siya but so far, ang gipahibawo sa amoa mao ra ni,” Borromeo said.

PDP-Laban is expecting that a crowd of about 120,000 to 150,000  will attend the rally, Borromeo said.

The campaign rally will present the  party’s slates for the entire province of Cebu, starting with the district representatives and the candidates for governor, vice governor, provincial board members, and city and municipal mayors, vice mayors and councilors.

The five senatorial bets of PDP-Laban, dubbed as “MaBaGoKoTo”  composed of Maguindanao second district Representative Zajid Mangudadatu, former Philippine National Police chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, former special assistant to the president Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go,  Senator Koko Pimentel, and former presidential political adviser Francis Tolentino will be attending the campaign rally.

Aside from the five PDP Laban senatorial bets, also expected to come are the “invited guests” of the President, or the other senatorial candidates he is supporting, namely,  folk singer Freddie Aguilar, re-electionist Senators Sonny Angara, JV Ejercito and Cynthia Villar,  Taguig City second district Representative Pia Cayetano, and Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos.

“I dont know who will be here from the guest candidates but the PDP Laban candidates will be here,” said Borromeo./elb