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THE
bitter rivalry between the dominant Lakas and the
upstart Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi), the two
main pillars of the ruling coalition, could take a
severe toll on the senatorial bid of candidates running
under the Malacañang-backed Team Unity, a senior
administration lawmaker warned Monday.
The
lawmaker, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the
simmering rift between Lakas and Kampi, could drain the
administration’s “financial and political resources,”
which in turn could dampen its chances of winning a
substantial number of seats in the Senate.
The
source warned that unless the disagreements among local
administration leaders were ironed out, the
administration Team Unity could face a debacle in the
May 14 senatorial race.
“The key
to Team Unity’s capturing a huge majority, if not all
the 12 senatorial seats up for grabs in the May 14
polls, lies in the grassroots machinery of the
administration. It is the local leaders who will deliver
the command votes, the winning edge in an election,” the
lawmaker said.
“But
with administration political leaders killing each other
in the local elections, a serious political backlash
would come the way of Team Unity senatorial candidates.”
He
stressed that the success of Team Unity depends largely
on having a “strong, united and cohesive political
machinery.”
“The
scenario of administration bets slugging it out at the
local level is the last thing we need at this stage of
the campaign. They will be preoccupied so much with
trying to outdo each other for political survival that
they would hardly take up the cudgels for the
administration senatorial candidates,” the source said.
He said
the situation could be exploited by the opposition,
which could offer concessions to any of the warring
administration bets for the benefit of its senatorial
bets.
But
House Majority Leader Prospero Nograles, a Lakas
stalwart, took vehement exception to the source’s
contention, insisting that Team Unity bets are
“insulated” from local political bickering.
“If
there’s a problem, it is confined mainly in the local
level. It would never affect the national candidates,
and we have seen this in the past elections,” Nograles
said.
He said
the fact that it will be “administration versus
administration” in more than 60 provinces, districts and
localities nationwide is a “testament to the political
might of the ruling coalition.”
“The
fact that there are more than 60 areas declared as free
zones shows the bankruptcy of the opposition when it
comes to grassroots political machinery. They have no
candidates in these critical, vote-rich areas and that’s
the reason why it’s an
‘administration-versus-administration’ affair,” Nograles
said.
He
stressed that although these local administration
politicians are bitter rivals, both sides remain under
the supervision and control of the President, who leads
the multiparty majority coalition.
“The
more free zones we have, the better because whoever
wins, the winner remains the administration. That’s the
stark reality that the opposition will have to accept.
At the end of the day, it is the administration of
President Arroyo that will be the big winner,” Nograles
said.
Ray
Roquero, Lakas executive director, said more than 60
areas in the country have been declared free zones,
meaning the administration will not endorse any of the
opposing administration bets.
Lakas
and Kampi had been at odds over the fight to become the
dominant political party in the country. |
