Senator Antonio Trillanes IV on Monday stressed he will join the presidential race if Vice President Leni Robredo will not run for president in 2022.
To date, Trillanes said they are pushing for Robredo to be the standard bearer of the opposition in next year’s elections.
Robredo, the highest elected official of the opposition, has remained mum about vying for the presidency or seeking a local position in her home province of Camarines Sur.
According to Robredo, she still has until October 8 to decide on her political plans.
Meanwhile, over 220 delegates from Liberal Party chapters from all over the nation attended its online General Assembly to plan for the 2022 elections and engage in a consensus-building exercise for the party’s platform.
Robredo is the current chairman of the Liberal Party, which ruled during the previous administration of the late President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III.
In the assembly, the delegates presented resolutions on the party’s stand on economy, human rights, justice system, pandemic response, and poverty alleviation among others.
The draft resolutions will be endorsed in the party’s National Executive Council Meeting today, Sept. 28.
According to Trillanes, if the Vice President does not declare her own bid by noon of the last day of filing of candidacies, he will file his candidacy for president.
If she does, Trillanes guaranteed that he and his Magdalo party will rally behind Robredo and make sure she wins the presidency.
“Our push for VP Leni to run for President continues. If she pushes through, let us make her win. But if she does not decide by 12 noon of Oct. 8, I will push through for the presidency. We will not let the true opposition lose without a fight,” said Trillanes.
Senators Panfilo Lacson and Manny Pacquiao and Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso have declared their presidential runs.
Aspirants for president, vice president, and senator are required to submit their candidacies from October 1 to 8.
“Ang lakas ng Partido ay nasa tao, wala sa politiko. Tulad ng sabi ng aming Party President, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, kasama sa pagdedesisyon ang aming mga miyembro,” LP Vice President for Internal Affairs Teddy Baguilat said.
The Liberal Party pivoted to the grassroots in 2017, opening membership to individuals from the grassroots and sectors. Since then, it has grown to 163 chapters and organizing committees with around 16,000 members nationwide.
“We are challenging the people to respond to these issues. We don’t want to limit the debate on personalities. This is why we involve our members in building the platform,” Teddy Lopez, LP Deputy Director General for Education and Formation, said.