CEBU, Philippines — Mandaue City Mayor Gabriel Luis Quisumbing has announced that he is seeking re-election for his second term and wants to prioritize serving the Mandauehanons, rather than focusing his attention on identifying his possible political rivals.
Quisumbing said there are many concerns in the city government that need to be addressed and resolved in order to ensure the satisfaction of his constituents.
"There are so many problems that continue to face, and my job, my focus, and priority is to make sure that I'll do what I can to solve these problems. If there are some groups that prefer to make politics their number one priority, naa ra gyud na nila," he said.
Earlier, at least 13 barangay captains took their oath before Quisumbing last June 25, while 14 have sworn their oath to sixth district Representative Jonas Cortes last June 24.
Quisumbing has stated earlier that it was a "puzzling move" made by Cortes. He added that he has "zero-contact" from their camp. The congressman, on the other hand, denied reports that he is running against the incumbent mayor.
As both are aligned under PDP-Laban, Quisumbing said this will be a bridge that they need to cross soon, but he will continue to be committed in improving the lives of the Mandauehanons.
Quisumbing remains to maintain a positive outlook and thought that this is "beyond dispute" and that the current administration is very beneficial to them.
"They can get support, they can get assistance in the city; they can get support and they can get assistance (from) the national government. It's an ideal situation for (everyone)," he said.
It will be unfortunate for those people who are just after their own interest, according to Quisumbing.
Quisumbing joined the political arena first as a Cebu Provincial Board Member in 2007, ran and was elected as Cebu 6th District Representative in 2010 until his second term in 2013.
He was a former member of One Cebu Party and later sworn as Liberal Party member in 2012.
He ran for mayor in 2016 with incumbent Vice Mayor Carlo Fortuna as his running mate, while he endorsed then city mayor Cortes to the Congress. (FREEMAN)