MANILA, Philippines – Makati Mayor Abby Binay was in tears as she vowed she would not tarnish the name of her father and former vice president Jejomar Binay, who is backing her reelection bid against her brother Jejomar Erwin “Junjun” Binay Jr.  

Abby addressed her father in her speech during her miting de avance on Friday night, May 10. 

“Alam mo ang mga pangarap ko para sa Makati at alam mo din na kahit anong mangyari, hindi ko dudungisan ang pangalan mo, ang pangalang Binay,” Abby said. (READ: Abby Binay: ‘I’m banking on my track record, not my surname’)

(You know my dreams for Makati and you know that whatever happens, I would never tarnish your name, the Binay name.)

“Makatizens, kung mahal ninyo ako, mas mahalin ninyo ang tatay ko. Dahil nanindigan siya hindi lang para sa kanyang anak, kundi para sa Makati. Kasama siya sa Team Performance dahil sa inyo,” she added.

(Makatizens, if you love me, love my father even more. He made a stand not just for his daughter, but for Makati. He is with Team Performance because of you.)

Her voice breaking, Abby recalled Binay’s failed presidential bid in 2016, when the longtime Makati mayor finished 4th in the race after enduring a months-long Senate probe into alleged overpricing of Makati infrastructure projects. 

“Dad, akala natin 2016 ang pinakamahirap mong laban. Ibinato na sa’yo lahat – pinagbintangan, ipinahiya ka, kinasuhan nang walang basehan,” Abby said.

(Dad, we thought 2016 was your hardest fight. They threw everything at you – they accused you, embarrassed you, filed cases against you without basis.)

“Pero ‘di natin alam, mayroon pa palang mas mahirap at mas masakit na laban ngayon. Alam ko na wala itong kasingsakit sa’yo. Alam ko ‘di natin ‘to ginusto,” she added.

(But we didn’t know there would be a more difficult and more painful fight this time. I know there is nothing more painful for you than this. I know we didn’t want this to happen.)

It was not the only time Abby cried during her miting de avance. She first cried onstage after watching a video of Makati children thanking her.

Abby only cried harder after her 9-year-old daughter Martina led other young Makati citizens in surprising her with flowers.

Abby is embroiled in a very public sibling rivalry against Junjun, whom she succeeded as mayor 3 years ago. While Abby’s mayoral bid is backed by her father, Junjun is supported by their two sisters Anne and reelectionist Senator Nancy Binay.

The Binay clan had fielded Abby to run for mayor in the 2016 elections after Junjun was dismissed from office in September 2015 due to anomalies in the construction of the Makati City Hall Parking Building II. 

In May 2018, the Court of Appeals (CA) overturned Junjun’s dismissal, arguing that the condonation doctrine – which the Supreme Court struck down in November 2015 – still applied to him. The CA upheld this decision in March. 

Binay had allowed his children to slug it out in their stronghold, provided they do not throw mud against each other. The sibling rivalry has since turned ugly, with Abby and Junjun even confronting each other inside a church.

But Abby is already confident of her victory, saying she is the predicted victor in all preelection surveys so far. She also got the coveted endorsement of Iglesia ni Cristo, whose members vote as a bloc. – Rappler.com