Bongbong: Ma not biggest donor

VICE presidential candidate Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. yesterday said his mother, former first lady Imelda Marcos, was his biggest fan but not his biggest campaign donor.

Recognizing the improvement in his survey ratings, Marcos said he was following a campaign plan that he believed would help him win the vice presidential race.

“You have to fight for every vote, unlike before you had a party machinery. You now have to get the vote on your own,” Marcos said.

The senator and namesake of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos made the remarks during a breakfast forum at the Manila Hotel.

Marcos said the party structure in an election campaign had become “less important” now and that it was through a “personal campaign” and a “general plan” that would make the difference in next year’s election.

He said it was no longer sufficient to rely on one’s political bailiwick.

“I cannot win from taking votes where I’m strong but in other places,” said Marcos whose family’s bailiwick is the Ilocos region or the Solid North.

Asked how much it would cost him to fi- nance his vice presidential bid, Marcos acknowledged it would be an “expensive enterprise” but he did not know the exact amount.

“I will tell you on May 10,” he said, in reference to the day after Election Day.

Asked about his biggest contributors, Marcos declined to reveal them, saying his contributors would not want their identities known.

Asked if his mother was his biggest donor, he replied: “No, she is not,” but acknowledged that she was his biggest fan.

‘Surveys give direction’

Told that the latest Social Weather Stations survey showed him trailing Sen. Francis Escudero, he said surveys give candidates direction and where they should strengthen themselves.

What was more important was to have to a “general plan” and this included “slowly going around the country, rekindling old alliances and gaining the support of as many people as possible,” he said.

He acknowledged that having the Marcos name was a “huge advantage” if only because he could easily call “important leaders in the country” and seek their support.

Told that he should have opted to run for President, Marcos said he was “happy” with his decision to vie for the second top position in the land.

“At the right time,” was his reply when asked when he would seek the presidency.

Asked how he could wrest the lead in the vice presidential race, Marcos said he would just “keep going around, keep campaigning, and ask support from sectors, different geographical areas” and to “fight for every vote.”