VP Leni Robredo and Sen. Kiko Pangilinan (left)
By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Stressing that he wants the Liberal Party to be a “true people’s party,” LP president Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan on Tuesday bared that with barely 16 months before the local and national elections, they are now targeting to recruit 75,000 new members, fueling speculations that he will be the opposition standard-bearer and Vice President Leni Robredo is dropping from the race.
“Ang ating pangunahing layunin, palawigin ang partido sa pamamagitan ng pagtanggap, pag-welcome sa ating partido ng mga karaniwang mamamayan o ordinaryong taumbayan. Nais nating maging tunay na people’s party,” Pangilinan said in his kickoff message on Facebook for LP’s 75th anniversary.
He further stressed that the LP will continue fighting for its principles and advocacies.
“With its continuing commitment, we put together the theme for our 75th year, which is ‘Tuloy lang,’ persist,” the husband of megastar Sharon Cuneta said.
Pangilinan claimed that since he took the helm of LP in 2016, he started sowing “seeds of hope” and opened it to ordinary citizens who share the same advocacies in shaping the future of the country.
He noted that from having 33 chapters in 2019, the LP increased to 106 chapters and organizing committees nationwide in 2020.
Pangilinan praised the LP chapters for not being hindered by the pandemic in responding to the needs of the public.
“Oo, partido tayo ng Bise Presidente, ng tatlong senador, ng mga kongresista, mga gubernador, mayor at konsehal pero higit sa lahat, tayo ay partido rin ng pangkaraniwang tao,” Pangilinan said.
Some political analysts observed the “political positioning” of Pangilinan as a prelude to his eventual presidential bid in 2022 amid rumors that Robredo is backing out if ever former Senator Bongbong Marcos is declared winner in the 2016 vice presidential race by the Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET). (AI/MTVN)
