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BACOLOD CITY, Philippines – Top local officials and residents of Negros Occidental came out on Sunday, February 26, to attend a rally in support of President Rodrigo Duterte.
About 2,000 people led by Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr and Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia trooped to the Government Center.
Interior Undersecretary for Public Safety Jesus Hinlo Jr, a Negrense, and some 17 mayors from the province also joined the rally, which started with a caravan from the Provincial Capitol.
Marañon, in a speech, said Negrenses are uniting for Duterte. “We are one with the President for the development of our province and the country,” he said.
He added that a locality with “no unity and peace will not develop,” as he assured the Duterte administration that it could count on the cooperation of Negrense leaders.
Marañon is also an adviser of the Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte National Executive Coordinating Council (MRRD-NECC), which was among the groups that campaigned for Duterte during the 2016 elections.
The MRRD-NECC, headed by Interior Undersecretary John Castriciones, earlier announced that pro-Duterte events would be held in various cities here and abroad, coinciding with the 31st anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) also issued a memorandum dated February 21, telling local government officials that they may mobilize constituents who are “willing to participate” in pro-Duterte events.
Victorias City Mayor Frederick Francis Palanca, president of the Association of Chief Executives in Negros, said they showed up at the rally because they are “very happy” with the national government’s performance, particularly in the war on drugs.
This anti-drug campaign, however, has sparked outrage elsewhere, with more than 7,000 deaths recorded since Duterte took office.
On the President’s side
Meanwhile, Hinlo said that through Marañon, almost all of the mayors in Negros Occidental have joined Duterte’s party, the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban).
“We have 5 more years to go. If we do politicking and go against the President, Negros might get neglected. We have an elected president, the Filipinos have spoken. We have to unite for the President,” Hinlo added.
Majority of the officials in Negros Occidental, including its capital Bacolod City, supported the presidential bid of Duterte’s opponent, Liberal Party standard-bearer Manuel Roxas II, who had an overwhelming victory in the province in the 2016 polls.
But 3 months after the elections, Marañon, along with the mayors and other local officials, jumped ship to PDP-Laban. – Rappler.com
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