Alvarez belies Lacson’s claim P800M was for local candidates

FILE PHOTO: Sen. Panfilo Lacson (left) and Davao del Norte 1st District Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez. INQUIRER FILES

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez belied Senator Panfilo Lacson’s claim that he withdrew support due to failure to provide P800 million worth of campaign funds, saying that it was not for local candidates but for poll watchers to be deployed on election day.

Alvarez on Friday released a statement clarifying Lacson’s claims earlier, who said that fellow presidential bet Vice President Leni Robredo’s higher chances of winning were not the reason why the lawmaker switched sides.

The former Speaker of the House of Representatives made a surprise move on Thursday by withdrawing support for Lacson whom he has backed for months in favor of Robredo.

“There is news about a budget request submitted to Partido Reporma’s then Chairman, Senator Panfilo Lacson. A national party, as well as candidates running for a national post, need poll watchers per polling precincts. As of 2019 data, we have roughly 389,703 polling precincts,” Alvarez said.

“During election day, you need two watchers, one for the morning, the other for the afternoon/evening, per precinct. Multiply 389,703 by 2, you need 779,406 watchers. For their allowance, reimbursements of their costs, such as training, food, transportation, etc., it’s safe to estimate that per poll watcher will cost Php 1,000.00, conservatively,” he said.

READ: Addt’l P800M for Partido Reporma local bets behind withdrawal of support — Lacson 

Alvarez said the budget he presented to Lacson amounted to P779.4 million, which he believed is not even enough at this point.

“Given these considerations, the budget, at the minimum, on election day itself, should be approximately Php 779,406,000.00 for a credible national campaign. But be mindful, this is based on 2019 data. (The year) 2022 will have more polling precincts. And poll watchers are merely one of many items on a campaign budget,” the lawmaker explained.

“All candidates and parties are covered by this harsh fiscal reality, no one is exempted. And all campaigns for 2022, perhaps with the exception of the frontrunner, are likely having predicaments with their finances,” he added.

He said he informed Lacson about the possible expenses, adding that there was a need to let local candidates align with Partido Reporma about the possible situation regarding their finances.

“As the President of Partido Reporma, I was duty-bound to inform our then Chairman about the requirements needed to sustain a credible effort on the ground. Without the ability to cover for these costs, it was only right that we inform our local candidates – from Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao – and ground personnel about the true state of our fiscal affairs,” he said.

“And that is what I did. Resultantly, a significant portion of the ground efforts made a decision which we have to respect. If they will continue campaigning substantially on a voluntary basis, they will campaign for the candidate that has a better – and not necessarily a certain – chance at winning,” he added.

During a press briefing at the Davao del Norte provincial capitol in Tagum City on Thursday, Alvarez made the announcement while sitting beside Robredo.

According to the lawmaker, he switched sides because he does not want to waste his fight against the dictatorship, as the son of late dictator former president Ferdinand Marcos — former senator Bongbong Marcos — is running for president.

To prevent the return of the Marcoses, he said Robredo has a higher chance of winning, as recent surveys place the Vice President just behind the younger Marcos.

Lacson, according to Pulse Asia’s poll from February 18 to 23, ranked fifth with only two percent of respondents choosing him.

READ: Why Robredo? Alvarez said he wants to continue his fight vs Marcos dictatorship 

Prior to Alvarez’ announcement, Lacson left his chairmanship role in Partido Reporma, adding that there were no ill feelings about the lawmaker’s decision.

EDV