Pangasinan officials endorse Danding candidacy

Pangasinan’s provincial board, most of whom are members of President Arroyo’s ruling Lakas-NUCD political party, have endorsed former ambassador Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco as the administration’s candidate in next year’s presidential elections.

Although Cojuangco has not declared any intention of making a second bid for the presidency, the board has issued a manifesto declaring their support, saying "the country calls for strong leadership."

They urged that the administration People Power Coalition (PPC) nominate Cojuangco as its standard-bearer, saying he "easily stands out due to his impressive credentials" among other key figures of the coalition.

Cojuangco’s party, the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), is a PPC member.

The board particularly cited Cojuangco’s decades-long stint in public office and his track record as a businessman, particularly as current chairman of food and beverage giant San Miguel Corp.

The manifesto, dated March 28, was signed by Vice Governor Oscar Lambino, presiding officer, and board members Danilo Dizon and Ariel de Guzman, Juan Ll. Amor and Nestor Reyes, Ernesto Bravo and Romeo Dadacay, John Agerico Rosario and Manuel Ancheta, Emmanuel Carancho and Dionisio Villar Jr., Marlyn Primicias-Agabas and Roberto Estrella of the first to sixth districts of Pangasinan.

The board’s sectoral representatives — Amadeo Espino, of the Liga ng mga Barangay; Jolly Resuello, of the Sangguniang Kabataan; and Charizzma Salud Carancho, of the Philippine Councilors League — were also signatories.

All are Lakas party members, except for Ancheta, who is an independent, and Estrella, a member of NPC.

Earlier, Sen. Robert Barbers and several Lakas congressmen were rebuked by the party for endorsing Cojuangco, who lost in the 1992 presidential elections.

Cojuangco is an estranged cousin of former President Corazon Aquino, who in 1986 toppled the dictator Ferdinand Marcos, of whom Cojuangco was a close ally.

Cojuangco went into self-exile when Marcos was deposed by a popular uprising in February 1986 and returned in the late 1980s during Aquino’s presidency.

Lakas was thrown into a quandary last year when Mrs. Arroyo, who co-chairs Lakas, unexpectedly announced on Dec. 30 that she was withdrawing from the 2004 presidential race.

She wanted to concentrate on revitalizing the country’s poverty-stricken economy, she said.

Two PPC-member parties — Reporma and Probinsiya Muna Development Initiative — have earlier endorsed Mrs. Arroyo’s former education secretary Raul Roco as the majority coalition’s bet for consistently topping opinion surveys.

While Roco is not a member of Lakas, his Aksyon Demokratiko party is a member of the majority coalition, of which Lakas is the dominant party. Lakas officials said the party might consider others but did not rule out choosing Roco.

One possible candidate from Lakas is Senate President Pro Tempore Juan Flavier, who said he would run if nominated.