No Rody-Sara magic in Davao provinces

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — The vaunted “magic” of President Duterte and his daughter Sara failed to work in their own turf in the Davao provinces.

All candidates allied with Pantaleon Alvarez, who was ousted as House speaker reportedly at the instigation of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, swept  the local polls in the province.

Alvarez himself is preparing for another stab at the speaker’s post after winning reelection.

His nemesis and Carpio’s candidate, Antonio Floirendo, lost his reelection bid to incumbent Davao del Norte vice governor Alan Dujali. “That is life. Ganun talaga buhay (That’s life),” Floirendo told The STAR over the phone.

Floirendo thanked his constituents in Davao del Norte for supporting him through the years. He only garnered 92,679 votes against Dujali’s 125,170 in last Monday’s elections.

Dujali ran under the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) which Alvarez heads in the province. Floirendo and Alvarez have turned bitter enemies from being the best of friends.

Carpio’s Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP)’s local candidates in Davao del Sur also lost heavily in the polls.

Members of the family of Gov. Douglas Cagas, under the Nacionalista Party, won the posts of governor, vice governor and House representative.

Cagas won his reelection bid as governor after garnering 171,057 votes against HNP’s Joseph Penas, who only got 105,581 votes.

Cagas’ son Marc Douglas also won with 150,656 votes against HNP’s Aileen Almedras with 111,927.

Cagas’ wife Mercedes also won her reelection bid as Davao del Sur Representative with 165,048 votes against the 74,328 votes garnered by HNP’s Juanito Morales.

With Floirendo out of the picture, the speakership race will be a battle among Alvarez and elected Reps. Alan Peter Cayetano of Taguig, Martin Romualdez of Leyte and Lord Allan Velasco of the lone district of Marinduque. The four were vocal about their intention to assume the speakership.

The loss of Floirendo and his cousins Anthony and Rodney marked the first time the dominant political family suffered a big loss in Davao del Norte.

“The people of Davao del Norte have spoken and they have chosen those in our party,” Alvarez said.

Meanwhile, Rey Uy, Alvarez’s candidate for vice governor of Davao del Norte, garnered 268,264 votes as against Floirendo’s partymate in the HNP, Raymond Millan with only 140,151 votes.

Incumbent Tagum City Mayor Allan Rellon, who ran under Alvarez’s group in PDP-Laban, also won his reelection bid with 91,368 votes as against HNP and Floirendo’s bet Geterito Gementiza with only 20,889 votes.

“It’s really a sweep by our group,” Alvarez added.