LP won’t allow rivals to ride on Noy’s popularity

MANILA, Philippines - The Liberal Party (LP) is not going to let any candidate not allied with the administration get away with attempts to ride on the popularity of the President to boost their campaigns.

President Aquino was the first to spot this apparent ploy by some candidates to deceive the public into thinking that they are allied with the administration when they actually belong to the opposition.

During a recent visit to General Santos City, the President noticed the posters of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) candidates wearing yellow shirts.

Yellow is the color identified with the President's family and the LP.

LP secretary general Mel Senen Sarmiento also cited posters, streamers and other election campaign parapher-nalia of Laguna Gov. Jeorge E.R. Ejercito Estregan bearing the image of the President.

The practice of the opposition capitalizing on the popularity of the President has been dubbed “yellow deception.”

In the case of Estregan, who is running for reelection against LP's Edgar San Luis, Sarmiento said the use of the President's image in his campaign materials was “deception of the highest order.”

The posters contain the images of the President on the left and the Virgin Mary on the right, with Estregan flashing the sign of UNA in the middle.

Sarmiento has written Estregan, telling him to take down all materials bearing the President's image.

“Considering that the President did not in fact endorse your candidacy, it behooves you to cause the immediate removal or recall of such campaign materials. It would be likewise well for you to conduct your campaign on the strength of your accom-plishments, advocacies and programs and not to resort to the use of computer-generated images,” Sarmiento said in his letter.

San Luis claimed the ploy of his rival was an insult to the intelligence of voters in the province and a desperate move to get votes.