Magsaysay wins in town where his father died

CEBU, Philippines - The latest standing of former senator Ramon Magsaysay Jr. is at the 16th among other senatorial candidates, according to the Commission on Election’s transparency server as of last night.

But for one town which is known to be a bailiwick of local opposition leaders in Cebu, Magsaysay is the number one senator despite his being part of the administration’s Liberal Party.

The town of Balamban gave Magsaysay 16,240 votes, the highest among all other senatorial candidates, including those who have already been proclaimed, namely; Grace Poe who was at 7th place with 13,172, Loren Legarda at 5th with 14,818 and Allan Peter Cayetano at 3rd with 15,835.

Last March, Magsaysay visited Cebu as part of his campaign sorties. But despite his hectic schedule, the son of the late President Ramon Magsaysay visited Balamban which is 63 kilometers from Cebu city, to commemorate the 56th death anniversary of his father who died in a plane crash in Mt. Manunggal, Barangay Sunog, Balamban.

In his recent visit to Cebu, Magsaysay considered Cebu to have a special place in his heart for being the province his father visited before he died.

Provincial Board member Alex Binghay who was re-elected and officially proclaimed last Thursday told The FREEMAN that Magsaysay’s victory in their town goes beyond politics and political party affiliations.

Binghay ran under the One Cebu party of the Garcias which is allied with the United Nationalist Alliance, a strong opposition of President Benigno Aquino’s LP.

“He is the only senator who before and even after his term was over, was always in Balamban, helping restore the forest cover in Mt. Manunggal area,” said Binghay.

Despite coming from different parties, Binghay said he and Magsaysay were good friends.

“Like his father, he mingles with the masses. He is our guy. That’s precisely why he got our support,” he said.

After attending a number of speaking engagements in Cebu on Mar. 17, 1957, the late President Magsaysay was flying back to Manila on board the C-47 army plane “Mt. Pinatubo” with 27 other passengers when it crashed into Mt. Manunggal.

At present, a monument to the president stands in the areas where the plane crashed. Every year, the local government unit of Balamban and residents commemorate the death of the older Magsaysay with a number of activities.

Apart from which, trekking activities have also been organized including an activity called “Paghandum ni Magsaysay,” annual adventure Trek (Remembering Magsaysay).  —/BRP (FREEMAN)