Alvin announces he is not running

Alvin Garcia is not running, leaving Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmena with virtually no real challenger in the May elections.

Garcia, in a press conference, said he has finally decided not to challenge Osmena for the position he once held for two terms - from 1995 to 2001 - upon the advice of his family.

Garcia said most of the members of his family, as well as close friends, said his pursuit of the mayorship under the Genuine Opposition ticket has been compromised with the appointment of Senator Serge Osmena, elder brother of the mayor, as campaign manager.

" When two or more siblings who do not have differences in principle belong to different political entities, then we are in deep trouble. Only us the voters are being fooled. Whoever wins the elections, they are still well entrenched, " Garcia said.

" They say that is the reality of Philippine politics. It is no longer the politics of principle but rather the politics of convenience. Some say it is even considered as a business, " the former mayor said.

Garcia's statement irked Senator Osmena who said on radio DYLA that Garcia should not use him as a reason for his pulling out from the race because, in reality, he can never win against his younger brother.

" I am willing to bet that he can never win against Tommy. Why, has he ever won in the two past elections against Tommy?, " Senator Osmena said.

Mayor Osmena and Garcia used to be friends and started their political careers together in 1988, running and winning in tandem as mayor and vice mayor, respectively. They sought reelection together and won again.

Then in 1995, Mayor Osmena opted not to seek a third and final term and stepped aside for Garcia, who went on to become mayor and then got reelected for a second term in 1998. It was during the second term of Garcia that the two had a falling out.

When Garcia sought reelection for what was to have been a third and final term in 2001, Mayor Osmena challenged him and won a very narrow victory. They had a return bout in 2004 and again Mayor Osmena won, this time with a little more elbow room.

Prior to the pullout of Garcia from the 2007 race, much speculation swirled on whether former Cebu first district congressman Jose Gullas would challenged Mayor Osmena. Gullas eventually put the matter to rest by saying he has already served the Cebuanos well and that he can continue to serve them in other capacities other than being mayor.

With Gullas and Garcia out of the race, the only remaining contended against Mayor Osmena is Wendell Lope, a largely unknown entity who filed his certificate of candidacy very early.

Mayor Osmena could not resist mocking Garcia on his pullout. " Sige, dagan Alvin, please dagan ( go on, run Alvin, please run ), " he said.

Senator Osmena said he is not dipping his fingers into the local politics, his main concern being to make the Genuine Opposition's senatorial slate win.

While Senator Osmena is with the Genuine Opposition, Mayor Osmena said he will continue to support the administration's Team Unity ticket.

Garcia, on the other hand, said he will continue to support the opposition even if Senator Osmena is its campaign manager.

Since Senator Osmena is now the highest elected official of the opposition in Cebu, aside from being its campaign manager, Garcia said he is deferring to him the power to choose the opposition candidates for Cebu City.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Guardo, who has announced his intention to run for congressman in the south district of Cebu City against incumbent Rep. Antonio Cuenco, continues to shop around for somebody to help carry the fight in the city.

Before Gullas announced he was not running, Guardo threw his support behind him. When Gullas made the announcement, Guardo shifted to Garcia. Even after Garcia made his own announcement, Guardo refused to let go. " The public will know one hour and thirty minutes before the deadline in the filing of certificates of candidacy whether Alvin will run or not, " he said.

Guardo said if Garcia still refuses to run, then another candidate from another political family will step up to challenge Mayor Osmena. Rene Borromeo, Fred Languido, Mitchelle Palaubsanon