Pagdanganan, Alvarado forge alliance

MALOLOS CITY – Former Bulacan governor Roberto Pagdanganan and Rep. Willy Alvarado, two of Bulacan’s top political leaders, forged an alliance the other day.

The two leaders, who both explored the possibility of running for governor, had had differences for more than a year, until Malacañang reportedly intervened and asked Alvarado to be Pagdanganan’s vice gubernatorial running mate under the Lakas-CMD coalition in the May polls.

Pagdanganan and Alvarado sat for four hours with other Bulacan leaders, namely Reps. Pedro Pancho, Lorna Silverio, and Reylina Nicolas, at the Mequeni restaurant at Clark Field in Pampanga Thursday.

Pagdanganan said he earlier asked Alvarado to become his running mate in his bid to retake the governorship, which he vacated almost nine years ago.

But Alvarado was not easily convinced until the President and Speaker Jose de Venecia asked him to be Pagdanganan’s running mate.

"He was offered a Cabinet position or be the Lakas-CMD campaign manager in Bulacan, but he opted to become my running mate," Pagdanganan said.

He said he and Alvarado shared similar plans and visions for Bulacan.

On their local slate, Pagdanganan said they are expecting more incumbent mayors to return to the fold of Lakas-CMD.

A month ago, outgoing Gov. Josie de la Cruz bolted the Lakas-CMD and joined the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi), together with 21 incumbent mayors.

Both Pagdanganan and Alvarado joined Bulacan politics after the 1986 EDSA Revolution. They were both top executives in the private sector then.

Pagdanganan first served as acting governor, while Alvarado served as OIC mayor of Hagonoy town.