The alliance of Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) and Kambilan, the dominant political party of Pampanga, will serve the best interest of the province.
This is the reason Pampanga leaders formed an alliance with the HNP, Pampanga Gov. Lilia G. Pineda stated during the signing of the agreement of alliance with the HNP on Monday in Parañaque City.
“We are joining the alliance because we believe in the [unity] advocacy of HNP,” the lady governor said, adding that Pampanga, likewise, fully supports President Duterte’s program and leadership, notably with the approach of the forthcoming 2019 midterm polls.
Pineda, likewise, lauded Duterte’s push for the creation of a department dedicated to disaster response and preparedness. Pampanga, being a disaster-prone province, stand to benefit from the proposal like the rest of the country, she said.
“We need in Pampanga the disaster department that is being pushed by President Duterte, and this will benefit our country and the Filipinos,” she said.
On Thursday the regional political party of Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte signed an agreement of alliances with nine political parties. Three of the parties are major national political parties—the Nacionalista Party (NP) represented by Sen. Cynthia A. Villar and Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos, the National Unity Party (NUP) represented by Rep. Fredenil Castro and the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) represented by former Rep. Mark Llandro L. Mendoza.
The six local parties were Kambilan, the dominant political party in Pampanga, Serbisyo sa Bayan Party (SBP) of the National Capital Region, Alyansa Bol-anon Alang sa Kausaban of Bohol, Aggrupation of Party for Progress of Zamboanga del Norte, Ilocano Timpuyog or Nacionalista Party-Ilocos Norte chapter, and the PaDayon Pilipino of Misamis Oriental.
Led by Pineda, almost all local officials of Pampanga, including the mayors, except for a few, were present during the event at The Blue Leaf Filipinas, City of Dreams despite the inclement weather last Monday.
“We are also forming an alliance because we believe in the advocacy of HNP,” Pineda added.
Pampanga Mayors’ League (PML) President Lubao Mayor Mylyn P. Cayabyab also expressed her support to the HNP and to President Duterte.
This is our support to the programs of our President by this alliance with this party,” said the PML president.
Marcos, for her part, said: “We are joining this because we believe that only President Duterte is capable of doing a big change in our country.”
She also said the NP supports the federalism push of Duterte because “we see that the monolithic, hierarchical Metro Manila-based parties simply no longer have the clout or even the say so in many of the electoral contest…we have a more democratize, more millennial sort of organization, much more flattened out with each of the regions and provinces speaking for themselves,” Marcos stressed.
For her part, Villar said the NP was the first party in forming alliance with President Duterte, as she underscored the importance in pursuing the programs under his leadership.
Most of the local officials stayed until the end of the event, even if some of the Pampanga mayors had to rush back to their respective municipalities to deal with the flooding in their respective towns.
Davao del Norte Gov. Anthony G. del Rosario, HNP secretary-general, said they formed the alliance primarily “to ensure support for President Duterte” and his programs, as well as support for eight HNP senatorial candidates in the coming midterm elections in 2019, among them Villar and Marcos.
Del Rosario, however, refused to name the other candidates, saying they are still finalizing the list of senatorial candidates.
Aside from Mayor Duterte and del Rosario, HNP stalwarts Gov. Claude P. Bautista of Davao Occidental, Gov. Nelson L. Dayanghirang of Davao Oriental and Gov. Jayvee Tyron L. Uy of Compostela Valley were also present during the event.