Officers of the UniTeam MD Alliance (UMDA). | Doris C. Bongcac
MANDAUE CITY, Cebu – A group of Cebu-based professionals and businessmen promises to deliver 300,000 votes for presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio in the May 9, 2022 elections.
They will also be joining the UniTeam grand rally that will be held in Cebu City next week to show support for their chosen candidates.
Eric Castillano, deputy chairman for external affairs of the UniTeam Marcos-Duterte Alliance (UMDA), said they are voting for Marcos because they support his advocacy to unify the Filipinos while adding that “in unity there is strong progress.”
Aris Gil Prieto, the group’s secretary, said they also wanted to see a “continuity” of the different projects and programs that were started by the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Ace for Governor
But UMDA is throwing its support to former tourism secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano for governor of Cebu in the local election.
“We did not promise that we will make Ace win but we will be working hard [at the] grassroots level,” says Cleo Forrosuelo, UMDA’s spokesperson.
Prieto said they see Durano as a person of integrity and good character, the reason why they chose him for their gubernatorial candidate.
Group members said they also want to experience a new brand of leadership in the province of Cebu.
But their members are free to chose who to support for senator and for the other local posts.
Loyal supporters
UMDA consist of private individuals who supported the candidacy of now President Rodrigo Duterte in the 2016 elections.
They bonded together, formed UMDA, and took their oath as loyal supporters of the UniTeam in January 2022.
Forrosuelo clarified that their group is a separate entity from the UniTeamMD, a parallel group of medical practitioners who are also supporting the BBM-Sara tandem.
Their group, that consist of around 300,000 members coming from the different parts of Cebu, also operate using their own resources, he added.
Mudslinging
Meanwhile, Forrosuelo they do not engage in mudslinging and character assassinations in order to “discredit any political opponent.”
Instead, they focus on grassroots campaigning for their chosen candidates.
“Negative campaigning is not among our methods. We do not need this, as we are confident that our current consolidation effort is very well within the radars of victory. We are confident that we can deliver honest votes for Ace Durano in the local level, and for BBM-SARA in the national area,” reads portions of the group’s statement.
UMDA issued the clarification following insinuations of character assassination that were attributed to their group.
/bmjo
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