Deputy Speaker and Rep. Pablo John “PJ” Garcia (Cebu, 3rd) said they have not decided on their official bets for president and vice president as there is still a possibility that an aspiring candidate could be disqualified from running for office.
He also denied that they were conducting a poll among their members to determine who they will support for bets in the presidential and vice presidential race.
“It is premature to conduct a poll at this moment because one of the candidates might yet be disqualified and that would change the game entirely,” said Garcia.
Among the candidates running for president, only former senator and dictator’s son Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is facing a disqualification case before the First Division of the Commission on Election (Comelec)’s En Banc.
On Thursday, January 27, Comelec Comissioner Rowena Guanzon disclosed on national television that she voted to disqualify Marcos Jr.
This unprecedented announcement was made ahead of the promulgation of the poll body for the case at bar.
Just a few months after the formal filing of candidacies, members of the Garcia clan were reported to have already shown their support for various presidential candidates.
PJ was always seen with Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso every time the presidential candidate visited Cebu.
During a program at the Cebu Provincial Capitol last December, PJ introduced Domagoso as the “next president of the Philippines.”
On the other hand, PJ’s niece, Liloan Mayor Christina Garcia-Frasco, daughter of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, announced that she and her husband, Rep. Duke Frasco (Cebu, 5th) will be supporting Marcos Jr. and presidential daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio for vice president.
The governor’s daughter even made the announcement during a December 2021 gathering with members of the League of the Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Cebu chapter, of which she is currently the president.
However, Garcia-Frasco clarified later on that the announcement she made was in her capacity as the President of LMP-Cebu, not as a member of One Cebu.
Garcia-Frasco also serves as spokesperson for Carpio. During their two-day assembly last January 26 to 27, One Cebu introduced their candidates in all eight congressional districts of Cebu from congressman down to city and municipal council members.