Ping on 2022 presidential bid: Show me numbers

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson is willing to throw his hat in the ring for the 2022 presidential race if one important condition is met.

Lacson was asked about running for higher office three years from now, and he was not averse to the idea.

“When people talk to me about the possibility of running in 2022, I tell them I have only one requirement … Give me a clear chance of winning,” Lacson said in a TV interview.

According to Lacson, he has become more pragmatic after years in politics.

The senator finished third when he joined the presidential race in 2004 without a running mate.

He lost to then incumbent President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, with the late actor Fernando Poe Jr. placing second.

Lacson said he had thought of running for higher office in 2016, but decided not to proceed because of his low survey numbers.

“After all these years in politics as a senator, I won three times, I lost one presidential campaign. You become more practical, you become honed in your experience,” he said.

Chance of winning

This is why there is only one condition he is asking those who are egging him to seek higher office.

“If you are encouraging or urging me to run, I have only one requirement. Show me I have a clear chance of winning,” he said.

Lacson has made a name for himself in recent years as a crusader against pork in the national budget.

During the deliberations on the 2019 budget, he exposed the funding for the pet projects of lawmakers and opposed realignments made by the House of Representatives that funded projects that were not consulted with the implementing agencies.

President Duterte eventually vetoed changes made by the House after the ratification of the conference committee report.

Lacson said his crusade had made him “very unpopular” among his colleagues.

He continues to push for reforms in the budgeting process, saying there should be more participation from the public in the preparation of the national government’s budget plan. —LEILA B. SALAVERRIA