MANILA, Philippines — Presidential aspirant Manny Pacquiao added two more names to his 2022 senatorial slate: reelectionist Senator Sherwin Gatchalian and former senator JV Ejercito.
Apart from Gatchalian and Ejercito, Pacquiao previously named 10 other personalities and politicians in his 2022 senatorial slate, including Senator Richard Gordon, former Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares, and labor leader Elmer Labog.
READ: Pacquiao adds Gordon, Colmenares to 10-man senatorial slate
READ: Pacquiao’s Senate slate includes guest candidates Binay, Tulfo, incumbent and ex-senators
Of these, Pacquiao said seven are guest candidates.
The boxer-turned-politician said he will still consider including President Rodrigo Duterte in his senatorial slate, saying he wants to focus on his campaign first.
“Actually napupuno na ‘yung line up ko kasi andito na sa amin, sumama sa amin si Gatchalian. Si Gatchalian. At saka andyan pa si JV,” he said in an interview when asked if he will include Duterte in his senatorial picks.
(My lineup is getting full because we have included Gatchalian and JV Ejercito.)
“Ako, magdedesisyon pa ako kasi pito ‘yan eh, pito ‘yung guest candidate natin,” he added.
(I will still decide whether to include Duterte because I have seven guest candidates already.)
He made the remarks following the statement of his competitor presidential aspirant Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, saying he will vote for and even endorse President Duterte’s senatorial bid.
READ: Isko Moreno: I’ll vote for Pres. Duterte as senator, endorse him too, if he agrees
Pacquiao reiterated that there is no bad blood between him and President Duterte.
Pacquiao had a falling out with Duterte after he criticized the administration’s policies, especially on the West Philippine Sea, and claimed there is massive corruption in how the government is handling the pandemic.
Pacquiao earlier claimed over P10 billion in pandemic aid intended for pandemic-hit families unaccounted for.
READ: Pacquiao now wants ‘questionable’ P10.4B fund for SAP probed
READ: Pacquiao says lockdown ‘ayuda’ marred by corruption
He even claimed the Department of Social Welfare, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources are among the corrupt agencies in the government.
This rift between him and the President even led the supposed dominant party PDP-Laban to split into two factions as they separately supported Pacquiao and the Duterte-led wing.
However, the two have seemingly since buried the hatchet when Duterte and Pacquiao met in early November during a meeting in Malacañang.