Partido Reporma standard-bearer Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson (right) and his running mate Senate President Vicente "Tito"Sotto III(File photo)
MANILA – Vice presidential candidate and Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on Saturday dismissed a projected win with presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in the May elections.
But Sotto maintained he is focused on working with his running mate presidential bet Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson.
"Hindi ko iniisip yan (I am not thinking of that)," he said during the CNN Philippines Vice Presidential Debates. "In my sphere, we are working on the presidency of Sen. Ping Lacson.”
Sotto said that if elected, he and Lacson will use their combined over 80 years of public service record to address the massive problems facing the country.
"After 30 years, I think, handa ako dito. So ganoon ang aking thinking...wala akong iniisip na kung iba ang mananalo at this point (After 30 years, I think, I am ready for the job. I am not thinking of anyone else who would win)," he said.
Sotto said they will bring to the table their years of experience in public service, along with the qualities of “katapatan, kakayahan, katapangan” (loyalty, competence, courage).
"With these, I believe we will lead by example," he added.
Earlier, Lacson, who is running for president under Partido Reporma, similarly dismissed speculations of a tandem with Marcos' running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, stressing he will stick with Sotto as his running mate all the way.
Meanwhile, Lacson on Sunday said small business owners and informal street vendors may benefit from their flagship Budget Reform Advocacy for Village Empowerment (BRAVE) program should he and Sotto win in the elections.
He gave this assurance after learning that the local government unit (LGU) in Malabon managed to provide financial aid and technical support to carinderia owners as part of its livelihood projects, which, Lacson said, reflects the essence of the BRAVE program.
"Isipin mo lang kung magka-partner ‘yung national government at ‘yung local government units natin sa buong bansa, hindi lang sa Malabon, na kung saan ‘yung hindi nga nagagamit na budget at ‘yung naaabusong budget i-download na lang natin (sa mga LGU) (Just think of it, if the national government can develop stronger partnerships with our local government units nationwide, not only in Malabon, we can redirect the unused and abused appropriations of our national budget and download the funds (instead to the LGUs)," he added in a statement.
During his visits to different LGUs across the provinces of Laguna and Batangas recently, Lacson highlighted the possibility of scaling up some of the good social projects of local government officials under his and Sotto’s leadership through the proper management of the national budget. (with reports from Priam Nepomuceno/PNA)
Source: Business Diary Philippines
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