UNA tells Team Pnoy not to neglect ‘Solid North’

Politicians should not neglect the vote of the “Solid North” as it is an influential force in any elections.

The United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) recognized this fact as it recently held a sortie in the Ilocos region where the Marcoses and Singsons reign supreme.

The administration’s Team PNoy has been campaigning around the country and dedicated at least four days a week to sorties.

But the general observation is that the Team PNoy avoided most of northern Luzon and with less than three weeks left in the campaign, there is no indication this would change.

Team PNoy campaign manager Sen. Franklin Drilon said the north was not exactly neglected because they have held sorties in Pangasinan, La Union and Baguio.

Drilon said the candidates campaigned individually in other areas, and that Team PNoy has received the assurance of the lords of the Ilocos region.

He said Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos has expressed her support for Team PNoy as she is a member of the Nacionalista Party (NP).

The NP is part of Team PNoy and is headed by Sen. Manuel Villar Jr., the husband of former Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar, who is a candidate of the administration.

Drilon said the Team PNoy candidates have performed well in the surveys in regions one and two, with eight to nine of them making it to the top 12.

“We attribute this, of course, to the effort of our coalition partners, in particular the Nacionalista Party in Ilocos Norte where Gov. Imee Marcos has expressed her support for Team PNoy. We are confident that this coalition will hold until May 13,” Drilon said.

In the case of Ilocos Sur, Drilon said Gov. Luis “Chavit” Singson promised him that “a substantial majority of Team PNoy will win” in his province.

“In fact he told me: ‘ You don’t have to go to Ilocos Sur, just leave everything to me.’ We are confident that with our coalition there with various political parties, we will prevail in regions one and two,” Drilon said. –