Bohol town mayor endorses ‘idol’ Lacson, Sotto

Senate President Vicente Sotto III (left) and Senator Panfilo Lacson (right) with Jagna Mayor Joseph Rañola (center). (Photo by CHRISTIA MARIE RAMOS / INQUIRER.net)

JAGNA, Bohol, Philippines — Mayor Joseph Rañola of Jagna town in Bohol endorsed on Tuesday, April 5, 2022, the candidacies of Sen. Panfilo Lacson and Senate President Vicente Sotto III after the tandem capped off a day of campaign activities in this province.

During a campaign rally here, Rañola introduced Lacson and Sotto as the next president and vice president of the Philippines, respectively.

“Someone I idolize, strict and angry at corruption,” he said, speaking in Filipino, of Lacson.

“If he becomes president of us Boholanos and Filipinos, he will truly give solutions to our problems, be it in infrastructure or agriculture. All solutions will come from our next president, Sen. Ping Lacson,” the mayor added.

Rañola was among the local officials of Partido Reporma who parted ways with the party following Lacson’s resignation. Lacson left Partido Reporma after the party president, former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, and the group’s Davao del Norte bloc decided to endorse Vice President Leni Robredo.

Taking the stage, Lacson personally thanked Rañola and other former Bohol officials of Partido Reporma for supporting him.

Lacson likewise thanked the mayor for teaching him ways of analyzing the budget, which helped him further scrutinize the country’s spending bill during deliberations in the Senate.

“There’s one person who taught me everything. The Filipino people owe it to him that there’s a Senator Lacson in the Senate who patiently scrutinizes the budget,” Lacson said. “It was hard at first, but with his guidance, I persevered and learned to scrutinize the budget.”

Rañola also backed Sotto’s vice presidential bid.

“We cannot choose not to support his partner, his partner in service… We cannot disregard his abilities and experience — the next vice president of our country, Sen Tito Sotto,” the mayor said.

At the end of the rally, Rañola, who is running for reelection, raised the hands of Lacson and Sotto.

Before the campaign rally in Jagna, Lacson and Sotto went to the Bohol Provincial Capitol Tuesday morning to pay courtesy to Vice Governor Rene Relampagos.

“Honestly I wasn’t expecting such a warm welcome,” Lacson said at a media conference in Tagbilaran City, referring to the reception they received during their visit to the provincial capitol.

He said it was a “pleasant surprise.”

“We were very happy with the way we were received by the employees of the capitol,” Sotto said.

The tandem was joined by their senatorial candidates — Dr. Minguita Padilla and former Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol.

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