MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who is eyeing to run for president in the 2022 elections, has formally taken the helm of the revived Partido para sa Demokratikong Reporma.
Lacson, who has long identified as an independent politician, took his oath Thursday in the presence of Reporma founder and former Defense Secretary Renato de Villa, former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez (Davao del Norte), and former Rep. Monsour del Rosario (Makati).
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The senator is replacing Alvarez as chairman, who is now Reporma's president.
Lacson said Wednesday in a Kapihan sa Manila Bay online forum that De Villa and Alvarez both approached him to become the dormant party’s chairman.
Reporma and the Nationalist People’s Coalition, which is chaired by Lacson's potential running mate Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, are expected to forge an alliance for next year’s polls.
Reporma was formed in 1998 to support De Villa’s presidential bid with his running mate, then Pangasinan Gov. Oscar Orbos. They lost to Joseph Estrada and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, respectively.
The party clinched a lone House seat in 2004 before going dormant. Alvarez, a former member of the president's PDP-Laban party, has been leading its revival since November 2020 and has been going around the country conducting a “voters’ education campaign.”
It lists people’s sovereignty and democracy, social justice and responsibility, environmental awareness, decentralization and devolution of powers, strong economic foundation, and voters’ education as its advocacies.
It also says that it is guided by its “five pillars” of general welfare and happiness of the people, honesty and integrity in the public service, respect for the rights and dignity of everyone, balanced and healthful ecology, and inclusiveness.
Lacson and Sotto have yet to unveil their platform, but have been positioning themselves as an alternative to the administration and the opposition. Vice President Leni Robredo, de facto opposition figure, has yet to decide on whether or not she will run for president in 2022.
The tandem is set to formally announce their candidacy on August 4, along with their senatorial candidates.