Roco prays for blessings

A prayer for blessings and a Mass celebrated by retired Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin at the Villa San Miguel in Mandaluyong City kicked off the campaign of presidential candidate Raul Roco and his Alyansa ng Pag-asa ticket.

"Upon waking up, they had a minute of prayer. They prayed for blessings for the country and for themselves," Roco’s campaign manager Dr. Jaime Galvez-Tan said.

"After praying, the candidates spent another minute visualizing their victory in the upcoming polls," Tan added. "They imagined themselves at the Quirino Grandstand on June 30, 2004 taking their oath of office with Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. They saw themselves winning the elections."

Roco was accompanied at the Mass by his wife Sonia, former defense secretary Renato de Villa and senatorial candidates Jay Sonza, Frank Chavez, Edno Joson, Bong Coo, Nick Gatmaytan Jr., Melanio "Batas" Mauricio and Perfecto Yasay Jr., who will be collectively known as JCJC GaBaY for easy recall.

According to Roco, the Alyansa ticket attended the Mass on Sin’s invitation.

"In every battle in the history of the world, the first thing done is to ask for help from God. We came here not for political support but to offer what we can do for the youth and the poor," said Roco in Filipino after coming out of Villa San Miguel.

Reporters were not allowed inside the Villa reportedly on the Cardinal’s
request and in consideration of his health.

Roco noted that they did not approach Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales because "we don’t want to be political."

"Remember, there’s a pastoral letter saying that the Church should not be political. There’s nothing political in the Mass. Cardinal Sin is an old friend," he added.

Outside the gates, Roco’s supporters, mostly youths in red shirts who belong to the "Roco’s Youth Army" and "Aksyon Kabataan," waited for the Alyansa team, whom they greeted with loud cheers and a brass band.

Roco told reporters that the youth and the poor are the priorities of the Alyansa ticket. He claimed that the itinerary of his party on their first day on the 90-day campaign trail is a "symbolism" of this thrust.

Asked about the persistent rumors that he would replace Sen. Noli de Castro as the running mate of President Arroyo, Roco maintained that this would never happen.

"They make it appear in Mindanao that Roco is sliding down. Very duplicitous," he said.

But he said that Mrs. Arroyo phoned Bohol Rep. Venice Agana last week to ask her to broker a talk with him.

"I’m a polite person. I talk to the tricycle driver, I talk to the security guard. Why shouldn’t I talk to the President? But if the results of that civility will be transformed into propaganda, out of sheer respect to a human being, she should not tell lies," he said.

From Villa San Miguel, the team proceeded to the Jose Rizal University (JRU) along Shaw Boulevard where Roco had a lively encounter with grade school students who offered him flowers. Some faculty members and college students took the candidates’ autographs as the children chanted "Roco-Aquino."

The Alyansa party then proceeded to the Nueve de Febrero public market, also in Mandaluyong, where they shook hands with vendors and customers.

The candidates then went around the SM Megamall, which Roco described as a favorite place of the youth. They mingled with the crowd and gamely posed for photographs with those who had cellular phones with built-in cameras.

Roco added that compared to other candidates, their campaign is "out of the box."

"We are trying to demonstrate that talent and knowledge can win this campaign. It’s the people’s talent, not the money. When the Filipino shows up, the Alyansa ng Pag-asa will win and all the traditional mode of campaigning will fall by the wayside," Roco said.