"A Ping-Poe combination will be the team to beat," the former Philippine National Police chief said on the eve of his supposed make-or-break meeting with Poe, his opposition rival.
If they team up, Lacson said he can beat President Arroyo, while the popular movie actor can give Sen. Noli de Castro, who is Mrs. Arroyo’s running mate, a run for his money.
But Poe’s camp said the preconditions and demands being imposed by Lacson on the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) standard-bearer is not helping unification efforts any.
Sen. Edgardo Angara, who heads the KNP executive committee, said Poe is "very sincere" in his desire to unify the opposition but will not compromise his ideals nor his aim of serving as president of the Philippines.
Since Thursday last week, when a Poe emissary called him to arrange today’s meeting between the two opposition candidates, Lacson has been telling journalists in jest that he would try to convince the movie actor to become his vice presidential running mate.
The opposition senator does not have a vice presidential teammate and has only one senatorial candidate in House Minority Leader Carlos Padilla Jr.
He told radio station dzBB that in going to this afternoon’s one-on-one dialogue with Poe, one thing is clear in his mind: That he would pursue his presidential bid until election day.
"Isang bagay ang malinaw sa aking isipan: Hindi ako aatras," he said.
Asked how the opposition could be united again with both he and Poe not wanting to back out, Lacson gave no categorical answer.
He said there is no specific agenda for their meeting and that he and the movie actor would try to discuss how they could unite and support just one candidate against Mrs. Arroyo.
Lacson said his dialogue today with Poe would be their fourth meeting since before the election campaign started last Feb. 10.
Nothing concrete, however, has come out of those meetings except that they meet again in the future and they would adopt Padilla as their common candidate.
But Padilla was subsequently eased out of the KNP ticket by Poe’s political handlers.
Lacson was interviewed while he was on his way to a campaign sortie in Tarlac. Tomorrow, he will go back to Mindanao, in Misamis Oriental and nearby provinces. His schedule indicates that there is indeed no backing out for him.
Interviewed over the same radio station after Lacson, KNP spokesman Miguel Romero said if there is anyone who should quit his campaign or slide down to the vice presidency, it should be Lacson.
"Mr. Poe is rating over 30 percent in all surveys, while Mr. Lacson is just a little over 10 percent, a third of FPJ’s mark. It should be Mr. Lacson who should quit. Anyway, he will continue to be a senator until 2007," he said.
Angara agreed. "You don’t impose those kinds of conditions," he said. "It’s unimaginable for somebody who’s ranking very high in surveys, or one who has a greater chance of winning to give way."
"It’s not a merger at all costs," Angara added.
KNP senatorial bet Ernesto Herrera said it is only logical that whoever will slide down should be the one "who has the least chance of winning."
Romero said there can be no opposition unity unless Lacson is prepared to forget his presidential ambition.
"He is still young. He will have his time to aspire for the presidency in the future," he added.
Romero said that emotions should have no place in today’s unification talks.
"The talks should be rational and not emotional. Rational because the objective is to unite the opposition," Romero said in a phone interview yesterday.
He also said that the two parties should let pass whatever negative remarks uttered between them in the past for the discussion to be fruitful.
But the mere fact that Poe and Lacson are talking already makes them very optimistic, Romero said.
Angara said a united opposition is "desirable" for the KNP, adding that while the move is mutually beneficial, Lacson has more to gain from it.
"If we cannot achieve it (united opposition) then we can go it alone," he said.
Poe’s spokesman Sorsogon Rep. Francis Escudero said Lacson "has every right to ask for things" but Poe has chosen to remain silent.
"While FPJ has respected Senator Lacson’s decision to run, he must also respect FPJ’s desire to serve," he said.
Escudero noted the talks may not be limited on who will withdraw, but "they may also agree to protect each other’s ballots from possible cheating by the administration."
Poe’s political handlers have reportedly expressed irritation over the fact that Lacson’s camp leaked the planned meeting to the press.
Lito Banayo, political adviser and spokesman for the former PNP chief, said the movie actor’s camp has nothing to be irritated about.
"Why do Poe’s handlers want the meeting a secret? It’s as if they wanted another deal. We’ve been open and transparent all this time. Senator Lacson himself has been very open," he said.
Banayo was referring to alleged offers by a Poe emissary for Lacson to back out of the presidential race in exchange for some concessions.
Poe’s supporters at the grassroots, meanwhile, believed that dropping out of the presidential race is not at an option for their candidate.
"It was FPJ for President or nothing when we solicited the signatures to convince him to run. We have the same stance in the unification issue," said Boots Cadsawan, founder of the Filipinos for Peace, Justice and Progress Movement (FPJPM).
Cadsawan said the six million members of FPJPM nationwide will boycott the elections if Poe gives way to Lacson.
In a separate interview, Ed de la Torre, national coordinator of the Citizens Rebuilding our Nation/PRO-FPJ, was wary over the sincerity of the talks.
"Mukhang drama lang yun. It would be illogical for FPJ to give way or slide down to vice president. It’s not an option for him," De la Torre said.
De la Torre acknowledged that the position of KNP vice-presidential bet Sen. Loren Legarda in the possible opposition unification "is part of the complication."
But De la Torre said Lacson is not likely to want a vice-presidential slot.
"If he (Lacson) decides to give way, the most is for him to declare support for FPJ and not necessarily be the vice-presidential bet," De la Torre said.
Cadsawan said his group will support whoever Poe chooses to be his vice-presidential bet in a unified opposition. — With Nikko Dizon, Paolo Romero