Dondon repeats history, tops City Council race

CEBU, Philippines —   Former basketball superstar Donaldo “Dondon” Hontiveros proved that his victory in 2019 as Cebu City councilor was no fluke after duplicating that victory in the 2022 elections.

Just the same, Hontiveros landed in the top spot in the roster of city councilors for the South District.

In 2019, he got 160,984 votes. This time, he amassed more votes at 191,938.

On the eve of the proclamation yesterday, Hontiveros said he was not expecting to be No. 1 again, even thinking his votes would be lower than his previous.

During the proclamation, the 44-year-old was surprised to learn that he repeated his 2019 performance and even earned more votes this time around.

Hontiveros, however, said that “the true number 1 is the people who sacrificed some things in order to vote.”

He likewise thanked those who served in the election, including teachers, volunteers, the police, emergency staff, fire brigade, and the media, among others.

“Daghang salamat kaninyong tanan kay kamo ang tinuod nga Number 1!” Hontiveros said.

Hontiveros offered his doors to defeated candidates to work with him and form part of the team for the Cebuanos’ sake.

“I pray everyone’s spirits to remain high…especially to those who may take it as a defeat. It is not. What is important is that we all stay the course and fight for our cause in the many ways that we still can, with or without an elected position,” he said.

“But my door is always open to anyone to share their platforms so we can learn from each other, there is so much work to do from here that we can only do it as a team,” he added. – JMD (FREEMAN)