AS local allies of the Liberal Party (LP) made a beeline for the Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte, Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III decided to buck the trend.
However, he said, it was “normal” for elected officials to gravitate to the party in power and this was more evident in the House of Representatives where there is a contest for the position of House Speaker as well as the committee chairmanships.
Davide added that PDP-Laban would also have to recruit more allies in Congress since they would need to be in the majority, or the dominant party, when Duterte assumes as president after June 30.
Cebu City south district Rep. Rodrigo Abellanosa was the first in Cebu to transfer to PDP-Laban from LP after he met Duterte in an informal dinner with other local leaders late last Wednesday.
Duterte was in Cebu for the first time since he won the presidency to attend a thanksgiving dinner at the Cebu Country Club in Barangay Banilad, Cebu City organized by Bisaya Napud movement, which is composed of groups and persons who bankrolled or campaigned for Duterte in Cebu. He met with another group of mostly Cebuano politicians identified with LP after he left the thanksgiving party.
Davide said he was also invited by Cebu City Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña, another local LP ally, to the gathering at Level 8 Bar in Adnama Building in North Reclamation Area, Mandaue City but he declined.
“I was texted by Mayor Tommy Osmeña, but nibalibad lang ko (I declined). Di lang una ko kay (I decided against it because) I felt uneasy. Dili pa kaayo ko komportable (I’m still not comfortable),” he said.
He added though that “maybe, one of these days” he would pay a courtesy call on the new President.
Davide assured he would support the policies and agenda of the incoming Duterte administration, especially if it would involve countryside and economic development.
Davide, the provincial chairman of the erstwhile administration party, earlier said he would remain with LP. But he reiterated that he has no objection if some local LP allies would start transferring to PDP-Laban.
He said he heard that some of the local LP mayors and other party members were considering leaving LP but there was no formal departure yet.
Meanwhile, Acting Cebu City Mayor Margarita “Margot” Osmeña stressed there was no alliance yet between Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) and PDP-Laban even if her husband had met with Duterte. Margot added that they have no problem with Abellanosa moving to PDP-Laban, as he would also continue to be with BO-PK.
BO-PK has always been an independent local party that could ally itself with any national political party, she explained.
She also said that although Tomas and Duterte belong to different political parties, they have a personal relationship that dates all the way back to when they were both city mayors in the 1990s up to the 2000s.
“I remember many years ago when there was a bombing. There were a series of bombings in Mindanao and one of which was in the airport (in Davao City). It was very bad in Davao and people looked at Davao as a very dangerous place and their fiesta was coming up. Then Tommy told me, ‘Let’s go to Davao and let’s show Digong we’re not afraid,’” she said. She continued, “So I asked my friends to come. It was not a political thing. And we were mostly women. We were about 30. And we went to show him that we’re here. We even had T-shirts made (that said) ‘Cebu loves Davao.’”
Margot was referring to the bombing of the Davao City airport on March 4, 2003 that left 21 dead and 148 wounded.