MANILA, Philippines – Taking a dig at his closest rival, United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) standard-bearer Vice President Jejomar Binay said he never left the country despite the hardships and persecution he experienced.
“There was never a time that I thought of renouncing my Filipino citizenship. I never abandoned my country. I’ve been here through thick and thin. Jojo Binay is a Filipino,” Binay told the crowd at a campaign rally in Calamba, Laguna on Wednesday.
Binay made the indirect swipe at Sen. Grace Poe just days after she topped two presidential polls.
In the recent Pulse Asia survey conducted in late January, Poe dislodged Binay from top spot. The Vice President shared second place with administration standard-bearer Manuel Roxas II and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.
Poe, facing disqualification cases involving residency and citizenship issues, also maintained her lead over other candidates in the January Laylo survey, with Binay and Roxas tied at second.
Poe held US citizenship when she and her husband were raising a family in the US.
She said she was a dual citizen but renounced her US citizenship in 2004 when she returned to the country after the death of her adoptive father, Fernando Poe Jr.
“We have one candidate who has never experienced any crisis. What will happen to us if we will just cry (when we are faced with crises). In the event of an armed conflict in Spratlys, we can’t just cry – we must know how to handle crises,” Binay said.
Binay also apparently took a swipe at Roxas, who comes from a wealthy clan.
He noted Roxas studied at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and worked as an investment banker in New York for several years.
Unlike Roxas, Binay said he grew up in poverty. He was a human rights lawyer during the martial law years, where he said he was persecuted for his cause.
During the campaign rally in Cavite City yesterday, Binay said he would appoint outgoing Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) if he wins in the 2016 elections.
Binay said Remulla has the experience and track record to head one of the most sought after Cabinet posts.
Political foundling
Vice presidential candidate Sen. Gregorio Honasan also took a swipe at Poe and said he is the original foundling as far as the Philippine political scene is concerned.
Since Poe announced her bid for the presidency, the issues surrounding foundlings has suddenly become a hot topic because it could lead to her disqualification not only as a presidential candidate, but also as a senator.
Honasan said in his case, his political career could be compared to the plight of foundlings, who are always being adopted.
“With apologies to Senator Poe, I am the original foundling. I am always being adopted and I am always left hanging,” Honasan said in jest during a forum held at the Senate.
Honasan, who has spent 18 years in the Senate, said that his first foray into politics was as an independent, so he ended up being adopted by different political parties and players.
Now a member of UNA, he is the running mate of the Vice President in this May’s elections.
Honasan said he never thought about running for vice president until he was asked by UNA to be the runningmate of Binay.
He said his initial plan was to retire from politics when his term as senator ends in 2019, just as he promised his family.
However, as a loyal member of the party, Honasan said he could not turn down its desire to have him serve as the runningmate of Binay.
He said the Vice President was also a victim of abandonment, particularly at the time when his survey rankings started going down. – With Marvin Sy, Janvic Mateo, The Freeman