Nacionalista Party to field ‘lean and mean’ senatorial slate in 2013 polls

Senator Manny Villar. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

The Nacionalista Party (NP) is fielding a “lean and mean” senatorial slate in the 2013 polls.

Former Surigao del Norte Governor Robert Ace Barbers said Thursday that the NP, headed by Senator Manuel Villar Jr., would become the “third force” in the midterm elections.

“Don’t discount us,” said Barbers, telling the Philippine Daily Inquirer that he, former Las Piñas Representative Cynthia Villar and Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano had decided to gun for the Senate under the NP banner.

“I’m in the running,” said Barbers, disclosing that other personalities have been approaching the NP leadership for inclusion in the senatorial slate.

Barbers said the NP was open to electoral alliances as long as this would be “based on principles, platform of government, shared advocacies and programs,” and not on “politics of patronage and personality.”

Torn between 2 lovers

But it appears that the NP, the country’s oldest party revived by Villar when he unsuccessfully ran for the presidency in 2010, will be torn between two lovers.

Cynthia Villar is part of the senatorial lineup being formed by the Liberal Party (LP)-led administration coalition, according to Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad Jr. in an interview on Tuesday.

Cayetano is being wooed by Vice President Jejomar Binay, leader of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) that has coalesced with former President Joseph Estrada’s Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) to form the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA).

Contrary to public perception, the NP is far from being a spent force following the 2010 debacle, said Barbers.

He said the NP had about 30 lawmakers, most of whom are members of the administration coalition in the House of Representatives, governors, vice governors, mayors and other local officials as members.

‘Captain ball’

“Villar is the NP president. He will be the captain ball,” said Barbers, when asked if Villar would be content to play the role of a kingmaker upon his retirement from politics.

Senator Villar will be finishing his second consecutive term on June 30, 2013.

“We want to be slow but sure; we want to be lean but mean,” said Barbers, son of the late Senator Robert “Bobby” Z. Barbers who had championed peace and order, and battled drug traffickers.

Told that he was not faring well in the latest surveys on senatorial preferences, the young Barbers said it was too early to predict the outcome of the polls.

“I don’t get the kind of (media) exposure the others are getting because I’m not an incumbent (official). We’ve been gone for quite some time from the national scene. The last time people heard of a Barbers was in 2007, when my father died,” he said.

New brand of politics

He said the NP leadership was talking with other camps seeking to join forces for the 2013 polls.

“But I’m not at liberty to discuss talks about mergers and coalitions. I will have to defer to higher-ups in the party to discuss these talks. If you noticed, the NP has been very quiet. That’s because elections are still far off, and we’re in the process of  introducing a new brand of politics. There are pressing issues that our party must address,” said Barbers.

So what makes the NP different from traditional parties and coalitions like the LP and the UNA?

Barbers said: “We’re open to coalition, tactical alliances. That’s part and parcel of politicking, an open manifestation of a vibrant democracy. But at the moment, we’re very careful about alliances because we just don’t want to align with personalities. We should align for programs and advocacies.”

Partial slate

He said the NP had the machinery to go it alone.

“We don’t mind launching it alone. We can have a partial senatorial slate—that’s fine with us. What matters is our passion for programs that will uplift the poor such as poverty reduction, providing jobs and employment, strengthening microfinance and making it accessible to the people, so that we can have more entrepreneurs.”