Tom says he's not worried Cuenco, Mike unite for 2013

CEBU, Philippines - Former Cebu City south district representative Antonio “Tony” Cuenco and Mayor Michael Rama yesterday declared they are joining forces for the coming 2013 elections.

Cuenco will run for congressman and promised to support Rama’s reelection bid.

Cuenco was joined by Rama and Cebu City councilor Joey Daluz III for lunch in his house yesterday after the thanksgiving Mass for the conviction of the 11 accused in the operation of the “mega shabu laboratory” in Barangay Umapad, Mandaue City.

Cuenco has been a staunch anti-drug crusader since when he was still in Congress and shared his campaign with other ASEAN countries when he was appointed secretary general of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), a position he still holds.

When asked who will be his tandem in his crusade against illegal drugs once he returns to Congress, Cuenco said “naka-decide nako nga si Mike Rama mao’y akong suportahan pagka-mayor.”

Cuenco said he was impressed by the courage and character Rama has shown to the Cebuanos.

“It’s a matter of courage and character kay alang kanako Mike Rama is the epitome of unity alang sa mga Sugbuanon. He is promoting unity. Concord rather than discord,” Cuenco said.

“Nagkasabot nami nga mag-uban kami sa umaabot nga eleksiyon,” Cuenco declared.

With Rama as the chairman of Liberal Party in Cebu City, Cuenco said they will most likely fully ally themselves with the party now that they have bolted from Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan led by Rep. Tomas Osmeña.

Reportedly, Cuenco was left with no choice but to join Rama’s lineup after Osmeña would not endorse him as the south congressional district representative of the BOPK.

Cebu City Councilor Joey Daluz III, who was present during the press conference, told The FREEMAN that he will be supporting Cuenco’s comeback in the south congressional district.

This means, Daluz said, that he will also support whoever Cuenco will be supporting.

“Tony Cuenco is my choice for congressman and whoever he supports, I will support,” Daluz said. The mother of Daluz, the late Nenita “Inday Nita” Cortez-Daluz, is a close friend of Cuenco and the two go way back to the Martial Law years. The councilor said he considers Cuenco as a father figure.

Daluz said it was not a hard decision to choose who he will be supporting for mayor between Rama and Osmeña.

“I will support him (Cuenco) sa iyang mga desisyon, whatever ilang gi-agreehan ni Mike. Again, I am supporting Tony Cuenco and that is also with Mike,” Daluz said.

Daluz already told Osmeña that he wants Cuenco to be BOPK’s standard bearer for the south district. But since Osmeña does not want Cuenco to be in the group, Rama offered the former congressman to be in his slate.

Cebu City Councilor Margot Osmeña said she was not surprised with the announcement of Daluz saying that the councilor has always been frank and gives no excuses that he is indeed for Cuenco.

Last month, Rama asked barangay officials to endorse candidates for his lineup and told barangay officials to each pick a candidate from the north and south for his lineup.

But Rep. Osmeña, however, said he is not worried by the joining of forces of Cuenco and Rama saying that when he first ran for mayor in 1988, his opponent was Jose “Boy” Cuenco, the brother of Tony.

“Just give me a few days to compile materials, supporting reasons why we can’t accept Tony Cuenco as a BOPK candidate for congress,” Osmeña said.

Osmeña recalled that Boy Cuenco was supported by the late president Cory Aquino and Nenita Daluz, but it was he who got the support of the Cebuanos.

“There is a good chance that the Cebuanos will not side with the group that hopes I am going to die,” Osmeña said.

The rift between Osmeña and Cuenco started shortly before the October 2007 barangay elections when Cuenco left for the US to seek medical treatment while BOPK candidates were campaigning.

Osmeña said he saw Cuenco’s move as a way of avoiding having to pay for campaign expenses, leaving the rest of BOPK to help the candidates. But Cuenco defended his actions in 2007, saying he already warned his barangay leaders that he had little to give in terms of finances.

Osmeña has since said that he wants nothing to do with the congressman, whom he described as unreliable.

Regarding the conviction of the 11 people for running the shabu lab, Cuenco said it was a landmark development.

“That was a landmark decision, I hope that decision by Judge Marilyn Yap will trigger other decisions still pending in the courthouses in Manila,” he said in Cebuano.

There are around 35 cases involving shabu laboratories in Luzon that have not been decided until now, Cuenco said.

The case of mega shabu laboratory in Mandaue City took eight years before it was decided.

“I’d like to thank the judge, the prosecution and all the elements of the PDEA and the police for arresting those accused of cooking shabu,” Cuenco further said. —/BRP (FREEMAN)