Rep. Yap to run for reelection with coalition or w/out a party

CEBU, Philippines - Representative Arthur Yap (3rd district, Bohol) has so far not decided yet on whether he will remain with the Lakas party of former President Gloria Arroyo or join P-Noy’s Liberal Party or run “party-less” instead for the 2013 elections.

Yap, who ran unopposed in 2010, did not rule out of the possibility of running for reelection under a coalition but he said he can also run as “neutral” by perhaps leaving Lakas.

He did not elaborate what he meant by “neutral” or just to become party-less at all. He said though: “I’m not saying that I’m joining LP.”

Yap told a press conference he called recently that the question was “relevant.” He said there is now a possibility that he will be together again with Gov. Edgar Chatto and Rep. Rene Relampagos (1st district, Bohol) and the rest of the LP hierarchy in Bohol.

The congressman bared that Chatto, Vice Gov. Concepcion Lim and the Provincial Board members have already signed up with the LP.

He did not tell the media however what went wrong with the petition of the 10 of the 19 municipal mayors requesting the LP provincial leadership to adopt him or let him be an LP stalwart. He also did not say how many of those who (petitioned him to become an LP) have already taken their oath to LP.

Yap, whose better-half hails from Loboc town, may be facing against incumbent Loboc town Mayor Leon Calipusan, and former school division superintendent Elpidio Jala, also a Loboc native and brother of former congressman Eladio Jala, who is now commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Reports have it that both Elpidio Jala and Calipusan, who is on his last term as mayor, were moving heaven and earth to corner the coveted nomination as LP official candidate in the 3rd congressional district.

Jala was the former official LP candidate in 2010 under P-Noy’s but lost his bid for vice-governor, in tandem with actor-director-turned politician Cesar Montano.

Yap however reminded the media that the election is “still far away,” saying that it is still months away and he would like to concentrate first with his work by completing the visitations of all the 436 barangays in his district.

From his visits, Yap said barangay residents were not really interested, or do not care at all, what law their congressman has legislated. “The reality is that they wanted anything or something they can work on for development and help alleviate their dire situation,” he added. — text and photo by Ric V. Obedencio