Angara calls for the strengthening of the party system

CEBU CITY – Former Senate President Edgardo Angara called yesterday for a stop to "mongrelized politics" by strengthening the party system.

Angara, who is running for senator under the Laban-Puwersa ng Masa, noted that while alliances among political parties on the national level were very clear those on the local level were muddled up.

"Halo-halo ang alliances sa local level. We have LDP chapters allied with Lakas in one area, with the Nationalist People’s Coalition in the other, and with other political areas in still other areas. This makes the election interesting but complex," he said.

Angara, president of Laban, said that he wants to reform the party system by injecting a system of party discipline on members.

The opposition senatorial slate is in this vote-rich city to try to make a dent on the vaunted political power of Promdi, the party of former Cebu Gov. Lito Osmena.

Sen. John Osmena, estranged brother of the former governor, said they have no candidate for mayor in Cebu City. Angara, however, expressed confidence that the opposition senatorial candidate would still fare favorably in the city.

"Our ally in the province, Alayon, has candidates for congressman in the city, I am sure they are going to carry us," Angara said.

Meanwhile, reelectionist Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile said yesterday that he is ready to declare a poster war against the camp of any senatorial candidate of the administration who destroys his posters.

A fuming Enrile complained yesterday that his posters in the Mandaue market in Cebu were being destroyed. He said that his posters were also destroyed in Antique and other places.

"If they want a poster war, they’ll have it. I have the organization to destroy all their posters from Batanes to Sulu," he raged.

He said that the camp of reelectionist Sen. Franklin Drilon was responsible for the destruction of his posters in Antique.

"They’d better tell their people to stop doing this or I’ll also destroy all their posters. They can sue me in court," Enrile said.

He appealed to his opponents to undertake the election contest as reasonable men and without the methodology of scoundrels.

Enrile did not specify how his posters were destroyed, but The STAR saw some of his posters pasted over with the posters of administration candidates.

While Enrile was raving mad over the destruction of his posters by rival candidates, he refused to take any action against cause-oriented Akbayan that has been burning his pictures or writing the word "trapo" on his posters.

Why should I? Those persons are never my voters. I’ll just be wasting my time if I file charges against Akbayan," he said.

He said, however, that he talked with Akbayan party list Rep. Etta Rosales the other day over the burning of his pictures.

"Etta Rosales was apologetic," Enrile said.