A SMALLER Liberal Party (LP) campaign sortie will be held at the Cebu City Coliseum on Feb. 20, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district said yesterday.
Osmeña , LP city chapter chairman, said the rally will not be as grand as the Feb. 12 proclamation rally of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) since the LP will neither fetch their supporters nor provide them meals.
“Let them go there by themselves,” Osmeña said, who added that “they won’t squander money (on our campaign).”
“We do not squander government resources,” the congressman said.
The LP Cebu earlier accused Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama of using City Hall vehicles and personnel to build the stage for the Feb. 12 UNA rally at Plaza Independencia.
Osmeña said he booked the Cebu City Coliseum for the Feb. 20 rally last week after he received a call from Sen. Franklin Drilon, the LP campaign manager, on their Cebu visit on Feb. 19 and 20.
LP candidates will come from Dumaguete City and head to Cebu to continue with their campaign.
Osmeña said he hasn’t made an advance payment for the venue rental and he doesn’t know if the LP will be the one to pay.
Cebu Daily News found out that it was an office staffer of Atty. Augustus Go who actually made the reservation for the Cebu Coliseum use during the LP rally.
But the coliseum staffer whom CDN spoke with said there were no available details as to what time the rally will be held.
The coliseum can accommodate 8,000 to 10,000 while venue rental would depend on the type of activity to be held and its duration. A rate of P500 to P750 per hour for example would apply to basketball tournaments.
Osmena said he chose the coliseum because “you don’t have to worry if it rains or not.”
He said there was no more need for them to secure a rally permit from City Hall.
Osmeña clarified that his decision to have the LP rally at the Cebu Coliseum has nothing to do with the controversy on the use of City Hall resources by Mayor Michael Rama for last Tuesday’s UNA rally.
“I booked Cebu Coliseum last week pa before all there issues about the rally came out. Besides, there is no need for a rally permit because we are not using a public place,” he said.
Osmeña said all they need to do is send word to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) office that they will organize an LP senatorial campaign rally here at least three days ahead of the event.
But he clarified that he is not yet privy to the plan by the LP national headquarters for their Cebu sortie.
“All I got was one phone call from Sen. Drilon last week and that’s it,” he said.
Still, Osmeña said, his Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) will be attending the LP Senate lineup rally to express their support for their national candidates.
According to LP staffer Brady Lucero, President Aquino will come to Cebu from Negros Oriental and will attend the Feb. 19 rally in Talisay City. The exact venue is still being negotiated, rally organizer Romy Villarante said. Chief of Reporters Doris C. Bongcac and Correspondent Christine Emily L. Pantaleon