‘Jinggoy’ Estrada, Vilma Santos eyed as Binay’s running mate in 2016 polls

Batangas Governor Vilma Santos. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Jejomar Binay confirmed on Friday that he is considering, among others, Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada and Batangas Governor Vilma Santos as his running mate in 2016.

“Kino-consider (He is being considered),” said Binay when asked if Estrada would be his running mate.

“Oo. Parang ‘yong si Gov. Vilma, kino-consider, etc. Di ba ang sabi sa Ingles, it ain’t over ‘til it’s over. In other words, it ain’t over kung sino ang magiging vice presidential candidate ko hanggang sa hindi namin dinedeclare,” he said.

(Yes, Gov. Vilma is being considered. As they say, it ain’t over ‘til it’s over. In other words, it ain’t over as to who would be my Vice Presidential bet until we declare it.)

But Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto had earlier dismissed talks of his wife, Vilma, running for  a higher post in 2016.

Binay said many factors are being considered in choosing his tandem.

“Di ba, kailangan ay mas gwapo kaysa sa akin (He is supposed to be more handsome than me),” he said in jest.

Turning serious, Binay said his group has been looking for those who want to run for the Senate to avoid what happened in 2013 where they failed to fill up all 12 slots in the senatorial race.

“Ayaw na naming maranasan ‘yong nangyari noong nakaraan. Hindi kami nakabuo [dahil] sa kakulangan ng oras (We don’t want to experience what happened before when we failed to fill up the slate due to lack of time),” he said.

So far, Binay has named boxing icon and Saranggani Representative Manny Pacquiao as one of those included in the slate.

He refused to name the others who have  sure slots in his ticket.

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