Senator Pacquiao’s bid as the presidential candidate of PDP-Laban was still uncertain, according to Palace.
On Monday, Malacañang said that it’s still uncertain that Senator Manny Pacquiao will be the presidential candidate of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) which has two factions, one led by the lawmaker and another by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi.
According to Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, it’s Senator Pacquiao’s right to seek public office but he didn’t know what the decision of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) will be.
“Karapatan po niya tumakbo. Pero hindi ko po alam kung ano ang magiging desisyon ng Comelec sa kung siya ang puwedeng magdala ng pangalan PDP-Laban sa eleksyon,” Roque said.
The Cusi-led PDP-Laban, backed by President Rodrigo Duterte who sat as the party chairperson, already asked the Comelec to declare the Pacquiao-led party as illegitimate.
Likewise, the Cusi-led party had listed Roque as one of its senatorial bets for the 2022 elections. However, Senator Pacquiao insisted that they’re the legitimate PDP-Laban group.
READ ALSO: Senator Pacquiao To Run For President In 2022 Elections
Meanwhile, the PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi on Monday said in an interview on ABS-CBN’s TeleRadyo that declaring Senator Pacquiao as the standard-bearer of the party in the 2022 elections was illegal since his camp, which was led by Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, was illegitimate.
“Puwede magdeklara [ng pagtakbo sa pagkapresidente] pero sana huwag na gamitin ‘yung PDP dahil ilegal na ‘pag ginamit ‘yung PDP,” Cusi-led PDP-Laban Secretary General Melvin Matibag said.
Matibag also insisted that the national assembly last Sunday wasn’t sanctioned by the party chairman, President Rodrigo Duterte.
He added that Senator Pacquiao should instead use his other affiliated political parties such as the “People’s Champ Movement” for his bid for the presidency since, he claimed, the senator didn’t have the support of the majority of the PDP-Laban members.
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