#PHvote quotes: Pols hit below the belt

MANILA, Philippines – Campaign feuds took a turn for the worse, with candidates dragging their rivals’ children, fathers and wives into the fray.

From the senatorial race to the so-called “Thrilla in Manila,” politicians got extremely personal. Instead of platforms and issues, they dug up old wounds and even marital problems.

With two months to go before the polls, it seems the boxing match is just getting started. Where’s the referee when you need one?

Here are the #PHvote quotes of the week:

Drugs and sons

“Galit siya sa drugs pero ang anak niya ay nahuli sa drugs …. Ano ang nangyari sa kaso ng anak niya? May pintura-pintura pa sa mga bahay pero ang totoo, ang anak niya ang involved sa drugs.”

(He is against drugs but his son was arrested for that. What happened? He paints houses as part of his anti-drug campaign but the truth is, his son is involved in drugs.)

– Former President Joseph Estrada in ABS-CBN’s “Umagang Harapan,” referring to the son of Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim, businessman Manuel Lim

“’Yung anak ko totoo na naging addict ‘yan eh. ‘Yung anak niya, nambugbog ng babae, naasunto dahil din sa drugs …. ‘Wag ‘yung mga anak. Tayo ang mag-usap. Tayo ang kandidato eh.”

(My son was indeed an addict but his son beat up a woman, had a case also because of drugs. Let’s not talk about our children here. We are the candidates.)

– Lim responding to Estrada

No lesser evil

“Sayang walang dark horse candidate. Good luck, city of Manila.” (Too bad there is no dark horse.)

– Reader Mark Anthony Neri, reacting to Estrada and Lim’s second debate called “Thrilla in UP Manila”

Wife beater?

“Eh pinsan ko po ‘yung kanyang dating maybahay at talagang nilapitan niya ako at sinabihan niya ako that she is a battered wife. Eh kung totoo po ‘yun, dapat bang manatili sa pwesto na doon kung mismo sa kanyang tahanan, hindi po siya minamahal?”

(His ex-wife is my cousin and she approached me and said she is a battered wife. If that’s true, should he remain in office when in his own home, he is not loved?)

– Resigned Sen Migz Zubiri in Studio 23’s Mano Mano with his archenemy, Sen Koko Pimentel

“Wala naman sigurong karapatan si Migz to say na sa loob ng tahanan ko, ‘di ako minamahal. Wala naman siya doon sa tahanan ko. Paano siya magiging battered wife kung kasama namin ‘yung mama niya sa aming bahay?”

(Migz has no right to say that in my home, I am not loved. He is not in my home. How can she be a battered wife when her mother stays with us at home?)

– Pimentel firing back at Zubiri

“I ask those who claim to have been blessed with happy and perfect marriages to please not delight that others are in difficult or troubled marriages …. For the best interest of my children, please keep my marital issues out of the campaign issues. My marital issues are not national issues.”

– Jewel May Lobaton, Pimentel’s estranged wife, in a statement responding to Zubiri

‘Eat your heart out’

“This is, I guess, an invitation to have dinner with us, with LP. It is high time we discuss the Sabah problem …. If all of us can come up with suggestions for Sabah, why not talk about them over dinner?”

– UNA senatorial bet Nancy Binay, inviting administration candidates to have dinner in Baguio to discuss the Sabah standoff

“I appreciate the intention to help and I personally wish to thank her for the invitation but with all due respect, Sabah is not a simple dinnertime conversation piece.”

– Team PNoy senatorial candidate Risa Hontiveros replying to Binay’s proposal

‘Be frank, Frank!’

“We want to hear it directly from Sen Drilon himself. He should be frank enough to admit that he was Lanto’s principal backer, and be man enough to admit that he tried to pull a fast one.”

– UNA campaign manager Navotas Rep Toby Tiangco on the bungled appointment of Macabangkit Lanto as Commission on Elections commissioner

“My shortcoming was, I did not ask for the record. It turns out, the finding was, it involved fraud.”

– Team PNoy campaign manager Sen Franklin Drilon on the 1992 ruling of the House of Representatives Electorial Tribunal finding Lanto guilty of poll fraud

Bam, the prince?

“It sounds like a ‘God Save the Prince! Operation …. Bam and his father Paul Aquino served under the Arroyo administration. His father, Paul Aquino, being the campaign manager of GMA, Bam is aware of his father’s role in the 2004 and 2007 elections that have been marred by wholesale electoral fraud.”

– Tiangco questioning Team PNoy senatorial bet Bam Aquino’s rise in the surveys

“My rise in the latest survey of Pulse Asia was a result of perseverance and hard work. Working hard is a good strategy.”

– Bam Aquino on Tiangco’s insinuation that the administration slate is dumping candidates in his favor

Where are you, Jamby?

“Good morning, Dapitan!”

– Team PNoy senatorial bet Jamby Madrigal greets the crowd in Dagupan

“Good morning, Dagupan! May taga-Dapitan ba dito? Joke lang!” (Are there people from Dapitan here? Just kidding!)

– Team PNoy senatorial candidate Sonny Angara ribbing Madrigal for the mix-up

– compiled by Ayee Macaraig/Rappler.com