Pacquiao to launch presidential campaign in hometown General Santos
GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines — Presidential hopeful Manny Pacquiao will launch his presidential campaign in his hometown General Santos City where the retired boxing champion is regarded a hero.
The 43-year-old senator will kick off his presidential bid along with his running mate Rep. Lito Atienza (Buhay party-list), and their senatorial candidates at the city’s Oval Plaza Tuesday afternoon.
Before that, he will hold a caravan around his hometown, also dubbed “the home of the champions.”
Pacquiao, who is aiming to succeed President Rodrigo Duterte, is running under Progressive Movement for the Devolution of Initiatives (PROMDI).
On Wednesday, he will visit Sarangani, where he served as its lone district's representative for two terms.
Geralyn Amarillo, a fish vendor, in a market here said she would vote for the city’s pride because of his philanthropy.
“Bakit pa ako hahanap ng iba kung may tumakbo naman dito na taga sa amin? Kilala na namin ‘yung ugali niya na mabait, matulungin sa mga tao,” she said.
(Why would I look for other candidates if someone from our hometown is running for presidency? We already know that he’s kind and he helps people.)
With a slogan “Panalo ang mahirap,” Pacquiao presents himself as a champion of the poor. The key themes of his campaign are eradicating poverty and fighting corruption.
There are over 350,000 voters in General Santos City, according to a Philippine News Agency report.
In 2007, Pacquiao experienced his first political defeat when he aimed to represent the 1st district of South Cotabato in Congress. He was defeated by Darlene Antonino-Custodio.
Pacquiao’s political career has been marred by his record of being a top absentee in Congress and his controversial remarks on abortion and LGBTQ community.
Disclosure: This story was made possible through the support of Sen. Manny Pacquiao's campaign, which arranged transportation and accommodations for the Philstar.com reporting team. This article was produced following editorial guidelines and the Pacquiao campaign did not have input on how the story would be written.
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