P’panga mayors declare Kiko persona non grata

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga — The Pampanga Mayors’ League declared Senate Majority Leader Sen. Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan persona non grata for joining his fellow Liberal Party members in calling for the resignation of President Arroyo.

Mabalacat Mayor Marino Morales, the league’s spokesman, said the mayors unanimously passed the resolution against Pangilinan, who traces his roots to Minalin town, during a meeting at the Mimosa leisure resort here yesterday.

"Like the President, (Pangilinan) is also Capampangan and we did not expect him to join the call for the President to resign at this time when Capampangans should unite not only for the sake of the province but also for the sake of the entire country," Morales said.

"The demand of the opposition for the President to resign has no legal and constitutional basis. She is the duly elected President of the country and this mandate given to her by the people must be respected," Morales said. — Ding Cervantes