May 2019: who are in and who are out

I can see how it’s going to work in Cebu and elsewhere. Candidates will go to church and hear mass before proceeding to the office of the election officer

Exactly a week from today, the filing of the certificates of candidacy (COC) for the 2019 elections will start. The period for filing the COCs was originally scheduled this week but the Commission on Elections reset it to Oct. 11-17 to accommodate the request of both the House and the Senate to move the filing to allow them to work on supposedly urgent legislative concerns.

The period for filing is not extendible, according to an earlier announcement from the Comelec, and does not include Saturday and Sunday, October 13 and 14, so basically, candidates only have five days to submit that all-important document that would entitle them to have their names printed on the official ballots.

I can almost see how it’s going to work in Cebu and elsewhere. Candidates who belong to a single ticket will go to church and hear mass before proceeding to the office of the election officer, accompanied by supporters and the sound of drums and bugles. A word of caution to them: don’t do a caravan after filing your COCs because that would be premature campaigning, which could disqualify you.

In Cebu City, the lineups of both the BOPK and Barug PDP-Laban are almost set. For the ruling party, Mayor Tomas Osmeña, North District Rep. Raul del Mar and South District Rep. Rodrigo Abellanosa will be seeking reelection.

Barug will be fielding Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella against Osmeña, actor Richard Yap versus Del Mar and Councilor Joy Pesquera against Abellanosa. The Barug council slate, including the vice mayor, has also already been decided with former congressman Tony Cuenco leading its ticket in the south and reelectionists Joel Garganera and Raymund Garcia in the north. A familiar name will be missing though as Joey Daluz has decided not to run this time so he can devote his time to being Labella’s campaign manager.

Former mayor Michael Rama’s position as Labella’s running mate is assured despite the misgivings of some people in PDP-Laban that he could weigh down the tandem because of accusations made by President Duterte that he is a drug protector. Labella is in no mood to rock the boat, however.

Osmeña has reportedly tapped Councilor Mary Ann delos Santos, instead of another councilor, Dave Tumulak, as his running mate, despite the fact that Tumulak, according to sources from both the BOPK and Barug, has led all surveys on voters’ preference for vice mayor. His main drawback is that both he and Osmeña come from the south district. Delos Santos is from the north. It may be noted that outgoing councilors Alvin Arcilla and Sisinio Andales are likewise from the north district and have been loyal Osmeña allies from the beginning but Delos Santos comes from one of the biggest barangays (Lahug) and could gather more votes for the ticket than either of the two.

The political situation is just as exciting, if not more, in Mandaue where Mayor Luigi Quisumbing’s alliance with 6th District Rep. Jonas Cortes, which was forged in the 2016 elections, appears to be over, paving the way for a head-on collision between the two most powerful political leaders of the vote-rich city.

It’s going to be a bruising fight by two evenly-matched contenders and the outcome could depend on which side Mandaue’s other political leaders favor. I heard that there has been assiduous courting from both camps on the Ouanos and the Soons since the split became imminent and it would be interesting to find out who had better success.

Next week would be crucial. Magkabistohay na.