Isko Moreno secures support of volunteer groups of presidential rivals
MANILA, Philippines — Manila City Mayor and presidential candidate Isko Moreno has secured the endorsement of over 50 volunteer groups and non-governmental organizations previously backing the tandem of Ferdinand Marcos Jr and Sara Duterte-Carpio 11 days to go before the May 9 elections.
In a festival dubbed "The Biggest Switch," groups including the United Defenders for Democracy and Sovereignty, Partido Maharlika, Basta Tayo Samasama, and the National Guardians for Unity and Democracy announced their support for the Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer.
At the forefront of the supposed shift were noted pro-Duterte personalities including actress Vivian Velez, singer and composer Jimmy Bondoc, and social media influencer Byron Cristobal.
Based on a statement issued by Moreno's campaign team, the volunteer groups "claim more than a million members" and collectively have "more than 10 million members nationwide."
Cristobal, known online as Banat By, admitted he was once a basher of Moreno during his spat with President Rodrigo Duterte. He added he was also close to the camp of Marcos Jr. for a time.
The social media personality asked supporters of the Marcos-Duterte tandem to vote for Mayor Sara but vote for Mayor Isko for president.
“I will support the daughter but I cannot support her partner. You can be there, but when it comes to the polls, tell your relatives, we are there with the real public servant,” he was quoted as saying in the statement.
Cristobal, a noted pro-Duterte personality who was even granted exclusive interviews by the president, earlier doubled as a Facebook page administrator for former Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Deputy Administrator and Mothers for Change (MOCHA) party-list nominee Mocha Uson.
The controversial Uson eventually went on to support Moreno, who defended her history of posting fake news.
UDDS president Marynette Gamboa, a former mayor of Dingras, Ilocos Norte, said she would not accept a Marcos presidency.
“If we vote for BBM, we will have the worst government in this country,” Gamboa was quoted as saying in the statement released by the Moreno campaign team.
The statement also claimed that UDDS, though mostly made up of former Marcos Jr. supporters, "also included groups that initially supported Vice President Leni Robredo and Leody de Guzman."
Lawyer Barry Gutierrez, the spokesperson of Robredo, shrugged off the alleged switch, saying none of the names on the list included in the press release were known supporters of the vice president.
For his part, Partido Maharlika national chairman Willy Recablanca said they shifted their support from Marcos Jr. to Mayor Isko because they saw his real desire to help the poor.
Bishop Mel Llanes of the Philippine Christian Churches Movement said they shifted their support from Sen. Manny Pacquiao to Moreno.
“So this is the biggest switch we have made, it is a prophetic declaration. We are declaring that until May 9, until the people go to our voting precincts, there will be a switching in their minds. And what they will vote for is none other than our president, Yorme Isko Moreno Domagoso,” the church leader said.
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