BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The United Negros Alliance (UNegA) will only support one presidential candidate in the May 2022 elections, disclosed yesterday by its party chairman, Sagay City Mayor Alfredo Marañon III.
Marañon said that UNegA members will have a meeting next month to discuss it.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, who is a member of Love Negros, earlier said that to have a collective decision of supporting a common presidential candidate is “most ideal,” but may be unlikely to happen as some mayors have already aired their preferred candidates.
Marañon said he got information from Rep. Cueva that NUP will not support any presidential candidate. Instead, they are allowing their members to support whoever they want, he added.
Marañon, Reps. Rafael Leo Cueva and Juliet Ferrer, as well as Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer, La Castellana Mayor Rhumyla Mangilimutan, Moises Padilla Mayor Ella Celestina Garcia-Yulo, Pontevedra Mayor Jose Maria Alonso and San Enrique Mayor Jilson Tubillara, are among the NUP members in Negros Occidental.
During the weekend, Partido Reporma presidential bet Panfilo “Ping” Lacson and his vice-presidential candidate, Senate president Vicente Sotto, paid a courtesy call to Gov. Lacson at the Provincial Capitol in Bacolod City.
Sotto and Gov. Lacson are members of the Nationalist People’s Coalition.
Gov. Lacson said they talked about how to increase the shares of local government units, as their National Tax Allotment will be reduced in 2023, due to poor collections in 2020, and the joining of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte Carpio to Lakas-CMD.
But he clarified that no commitment was made, in an answer to queries if he will support the Lacson-Sotto tandem.
Other members of NPC in Negros Occidental, aside from Lacson, are Rep. Gerardo Valmayor (1st district, Negros Occ), Bacolod Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya, former Rep. Mercedes Alvarez, San Carlos City Mayor Renato Gustilo, Cauayan Mayor John Rey Tabujara, Kabankalan City Mayor Pedro Zayco, Ilog Mayor John Paul Alvarez, Isabela Mayor Irene Montilla, Pulupandan Mayor Miguel Pena, who is running for the town vice mayoralty position, Sipalay City Mayor Gina Montilla-Lizares and Bago City Mayor Nicholas Yulo.*
