MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo has gained the support of another local government executive with the endorsement of Northern Samar Gov. Edwin Ongchuan.
"We in the province of Northern Samar, agree with President Rodrigo Duterte that the next president of the Republic should be compassionate, decisive and a good judge of people’s character," he said in a statement.
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Duterte has yet to name a candidate whose bid he will back for the 2022 polls, after his long-time aide Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go quit the race and said he was not ready. The president however has given hints at supporting a bet who works for the people.
In an interview on Monday, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi — president of the PDP-Laban faction that Duterte belongs to — said that the president may just be presenting a "wish list" on who he would want to replace him.
"When he (Duterte) was talking about it, he was talking about certain qualities of the president, certain qualities of a would-be-president... If we put them all together, it seems that no individual would have that kind of qualification," Cusi, whose party has yet to decide who to support, said on CNN Philippines.
Ongchuan said their province’s endorsement was discussed by local officials, including municipal mayors, provincial and barangay officials and sectoral heads.
"After assessment of the character and track record of all presidential aspirants, it came to our collective discernment that the candidate who best fits these qualities is VP Leni Robredo," Gochuan added.
“With her kind of leadership, we believe that VP Leni will be beside us in our efforts for sustained progress. Hence, we express our wholehearted to support to VP Leni,”
This is the latest endorsement of a local government official Robredo secured. Eastern Samar Gov. Ben Evardone and Bulacan Gov. Daniel Fernando also endorsed Robredo for president.
Groups from the the academe, economists, the youth, priests, lawyers and human rights defenders have also endorsed Robredo, the de fact opposition canddiate.
In the past week, Robredo wooed voters in Negros where she drew her largest crowd of supporters yet, since the start of the campaign period.
Her team then flew to Cagayan and Isabela provinces, part of the “Solid North” claimed to be backing her rival’s bid, aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., where she drew thousands of attendees, although a smaller crowd in her past mammoth rallies.
She placed second with 15% voter preference In the Pulse Asia survey conducted February 18-23, more than a week since the official campaign period has started. Partido Federal ng Pilipinas standard-bearer maintained his top spot with 60%. — with report from Xave Gregorio and The STAR/Alexis Romero