SUMMARY
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ANGELES CITY, Philippines – Red tents that carry the name of Angeles City Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr. vis-a-vis blue posters with the face of retired Philippine National Police General Oscar Albayalde are frequently seen in busy areas in the cities of Angeles and Mabalacat in Pampanga province.
The 2025 midterm election is still more than a year away. However, it appears that Lazatin and Albayalde have started to make their presence known.
Bearing the name of Lazatin, the red tents also have the word “Cong” before his name.
“Cong” in Kapampangan is short for “coyang,” which is used by the locals to address an older brother, Team Lazatin explained. “Cong” is also used to refer to a district representative – as in “Congressman.”
Editor’s Note: We earlier reported that the mayor and Cong Jun are stepbrothers. This has been corrected.
Carmelo Lazatin II, known to locals as “Cong Jon,” is the incumbent 1st District Representative of Pampanga. Cong Jon is serving his last term while Lazatin is on his second mayoral term. They are half brothers.
Local political observers are convinced that the Lazatin brothers will switch places in the 2025 midterm polls.
The red tents were installed on February 23 in 16 different barangays of Mabalacat: Dau, Lakandula, Duquit, Camachiles, Mabiga, Sto. Rosario, San Francisco, Sta. Ines, Mangalit, Mamatitang, Atlu Bola, Cacutud, Tabun, Dolores, San Joaquin, and Poblacion. The remaining 11 barangays will receive their tents on March 8, Team Lazating said.
Angeles City chief executive IC Calaguas spearheaded the tent distribution together with the respective barangay captains.
Meanwhile, in the blue corner, posters of Albayalde have been pinned up in most residential areas since the holiday season in 2023.
Albayalde said he is still “feeling the ground” whether to run for public office. Albayalde is also making his presence felt through media interviews and public appearances in different communities.
The talk in Pampanga is that Albayalde is eyeing to run as mayor of Angeles City or 1st District Representative of Pampanga.
In 2023, he once admitted that there were “some people” who had been pushing him to run for public office.
The former Philippine National Police chief was once implicated in the “ninja cops” controversy, which later on were dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman. He ended his career in the national police force quietly after he went on non-duty status in October 2019.
The 1st District of Pampanga consists of the highly urbanized Angeles City, its neighboring component Mabalacat City, and the municipality of Magalang.
The filing of candidacy for the 2025 midterm polls is set for October. Will it be red versus blue? – Rappler.com
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