Roxas still undecided on 2019 election plans

Former presidential candidate and Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Manuel “Mar” Roxas III admitted on Sunday that he is still undecided on seeking another post in the mid-term elections in May 2019.

“I think lahat ng Pilipino kapag tinawag na mag-serbisyo, bukas e (I think Filipinos are open to public service if given the opportunity),” Roxas said in an interview over Vice President Leni Robredo’s radio show “BISErbisyong Leni.”

Roxas, who was Robredo’s running mate in the 2016 elections, however, said that he’s still finding a reason why he should run for senator.

“Sa totoo lang, ako rin gusto kong malaman iyong sagot sa katanungan… Alam naman natin iyong sitwasyon ng bansa natin, iyong sinabi ng survey, pero para sa akin hindi iyon ang batayan para sa desisyon. Ang hinahanap ko iyong sinseridad sa kalooban ko na nais pang magpatuloy (The truth is I also want to know the answer to those questions. We all know the situation in our country now, according to surveys, but it’s not going to be the basis for my decision. I am looking for sincerity in my willingness to still continue),” he said.

Roxas was referring to a survey last month where he ranked between 14th and 21st place among those likely to win in the 2019 Senatorial race, with 27.1% of respondents saying they would vote for him.

READ: Pulse Asia: Poe still frontrunner in pre-May 2019 polls

The Vice President, the former ruling party LP, and other groups are urging Roxas to run for senator, but he said he has not made up his mind yet.

“Hindi ko gusto na ilahok iyong sarili ko, i-presinta ang sarili ko sa kababayan natin, na sasabihin ko na ipaglalaban ko kayo, na hindi buong-buo iyong loob ko na ipaglalaban ko (I don’t want to include myself or present myself to our people and say that I will fight for them if it is not really in my heart) ,” he said.

Roxas added that while there are things he wanted to correct in the country’s current situation, he can still make a positive change as a private individual.

“Marami man akong nais sabihin tungkol sa sitwasyon natin ngayon, marami man akong gustong itama tungkol sa sitwasyon natin ngayon, bilang isang pribado, may espasyo naman bilang pribado na gawin iyon (I may have a lot of things to say about our situation, I may want to correct a lot of things, but I can do that even as a private citizen),” he said.

Roxas served in the Senate from 2004 to 2010 before he was defeated in the 2010 vice presidential race.

Under the Aquino administration, he had served as the secretary of the Department of Transportation (the DOTC then) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) before he lost to President Rodrigo Duterte in the 2016 presidential elections. /ee