Barug still to decide if they’ll join Sara

Although there were offers sent to them, Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella said they have yet to decide if they will forge a coalition with the Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP), the regional political party of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Labella, who is chairman of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) in Cebu City, said that if Barug Team Rama decides to join HPN, it should be a group decision.

Labella clarified that they are still with PDP-Laban.

“We haven’t talked about it yet, we’re still with PDP-Laban. Yes there were communications sent to us from different personalities but not directly from the good mayor of Davao City. The group has to be consulted because it’s not just me, it has to be the consensus. I’m always consultative. I always ask the other members,” he said.

Meanwhile, Cebu City Councilor Erik Espina said he believes that more groups and individuals are joining his initiative in collecting one million signatures to convince Sara to run for senator in the May 2019 mid-term election.

He said that President Rodrigo Duterte, the mayor’s father, quashed all these initiatives, “but we thought it necessary to come up with this because the electoral process involves the people.”

Espina said that at present, only Senate President Vicente Sotto III represents Cebu, because his roots are in Cebu. He was told that for May 2019, there are hardly any prospective winners from Cebu.

“It’s unfortunate because Cebuano voters are almost three million now based on Comelec records. So, we are going to adopt Sara Duterte-Carpio whose roots are from Danao City. So that when she makes it to the Senate, she will remember that Cebuanos initiated this effort,” Espina said.

Labella said there is no conflict between PDP-Laban if they decide to join HNP,because they are still affiliated with President Duterte. He said that when Sara came to Cebu, they were able to meet her.

Asked about the report that Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan (BOPK) also wants to be in coalition with HNP, Labella said it is their prerogative.

“After all, I think most, if not all, local politicians want to be identified with the presidential daughter,” he said.

Earlier, Councilor Raymond Garcia said that BOPK applied for a coalition with the presidential daughter’s party but was not accepted. /