MANILA, Philippines?Sen. Loren Legarda said Wednesday that her rival, Sen. Manuel ?Mar? Roxas II, had tried to arrange a deal with her to withdraw from the vice presidential race.

?Back when I had yet to find my running mate, Mar tried to make an arrangement with me ?outside of the political process,?? Legarda said in a radio interview.

She said the offer was made before the Senate adjourned in February.

Legarda recounted that passing by Roxas? desk in the session hall, the Liberal Party vice presidential candidate told her: ?If there?s any way that you can support my principal and me, if there?s anything you want, we can provide.?

Talking in riddles

?Please don?t talk to me in riddles,? she said she told Roxas, running mate of Sen. Benigno Aquino III.

Her political advisers interpreted Roxas? statement as ?something like an exchange deal.?

Legarda told dzBB that there was ?no backing out for me.?

?For Mar, the vice presidency was just a second choice because he was gunning for the presidency before. For me, the bid for the vice presidency is the natural continuation of my years in public service and my work to improve the lives of Filipinos by focusing on food security, jobs, health, peace and order, and a livable environment,? she said.

In a statement, the Liberal Party said that Legarda was getting ?desperate? as Roxas continued to pull away in voters? opinion polls.

In the latest Social Weather Stations survey in February, Roxas led Legarda by 17 percentage points.

Legarda said she expected that by April 1, she would be ahead of Roxas in the surveys, pointing out that Roxas had a head start in the campaign and had spent over P1 billion on his political ads.