When he returns to private life after June 30, Cebu City Rep. Tomas Osmeña will remain active in local politics and lead his group, the Bando Osmena-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK).
He may even extend assistance to Hilario “Junjun” Davide III if he gets elected as governor.
“I will only be there to help out Junjun, but that is if he would ask for my help. I’m just happy that he is winning and he will need a lot of help,” Osmena told Cebu Daily News
hours after his defeat in the mayoralty race was official.
How the Capitol will be run is crucial to Cebu City’s growth, said Osmeña who lost to reelected Mayor Michael Rama by 6,376 votes in last Monday’s election.
After Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia was suspended in mid December 2012, he led BO-PK members in a few visits to the office of Acting Gov. Agnes Magpale to convey their support.
Osmeña said he accepts the May 13 poll results but “will not concede” to Rama because of “abnormalities” in the outcome that he wanted studied by his lawyers for a possible election protest.
He said he would still move around Cebu City and advise allies in the City Council, especially about the 300-hectare South Road Properties (SRP), where the choice of investors has to be carefullly made.
“I will never abandon Cebu,” he said.
He also BO-PK would remain active even if he and Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young won’t be in charge of City Hall.
In June, he plans to leave again for Houston, Texas for a medical checkup, part of his post-cancer followup visits but will be back in Cebu after that.
“I do not abandon my people. I’m jot like Mike Rama nga maniguro lang. That is why all of his people (councior candidates) lost. Me, I take care of everybody.”
Keeping faith
Osmeña said he wanted to thank all those supported BO-PK’s campaign.
“Thank you to our volunteers who kept their faith in BO-PK. I want to tell them that there is no way I will give up on Cebu,” he said.
“I hope Cebu will continue to move ahead. Cebu is going thorugh a stage of continuous nation building. While Rama is there, that nation building will stop. When he is no longer there, it will continue.”
Osmeña was resting when Cebu Daily News visited his barangay Guadalupe home for an interview Tuesday afternoon, the day after the election. His son, Miguel woke him up.
Miguel said his father stayed home the whole day to rest. He was unable to sleep Monday night to monitor election results.
Osmeña was home with his wife, Margot and son Miguel, while they received reports from their field volunteers.
His sister, Ma. Victoria “Minnie” Osmena and legal volunteers were at the canvass area at City Hall’s legislative building to observe the canvass of election returns.
The congressman said his election defeat was caused by “a combination of money, intimidation and the strange thing about the computerization of the election.”
The congressman said he received reports that Team Rama spent P50 to P60 million to buy votes, an allegation the party denies.
Some of the funds came from businessmen supporting Rama’s candidacy, Osmeña said.
Osmeña also questioned the slow pace of balloting where voters had to line up for one to two hours just to cast their ballot. many frustrated city residents went home instead.
He said this was contrary to the aim of the automated elections to speed up the voting process.
He also questioned the change of the two city election officers – Marchel Sarno (north district) and Edwin Cadungog (south district)–shortly before the elections.
Some allies like Tisa councilor Eddie Cabulao and Sto. Niño barangay captain Pancho Ramirez visited the Osmena home along Quijada Street in barangay Guadalupe to assure the outgoing congressman of their support.
About 20 Osmeña supporters hung around in the garden. Though he looked tired, Osmeña was smiling while he entertained his guests.
He told CDN that he does not have to mourn his loss to Rama. Asked if he still intends to run in the 2016 elections, Osmeña said “I might.”
He said another option is to field another mayoral candidate but he would not say who.