Drilon on Grace Poe’s presidential bid: ‘I told you so’

Senate President Franklin Drilon. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

“I told you so,” Senate President Franklin Drilon said on Wednesday, reacting to Senator Grace Poe’s impending declaration of her presidential bid in 2016.

“Matagal ko nang sinabi sa ating mga kababayan at sa aking mga kasama sa partido na maghanda tayo dahil si Senator Grace Poe ay tatakbo sa pagkapangulo. Kaya tigilan na natin iyang pangliligaw. Kaya sabi ko nga nu’ng lumabas itong balita kahapon, ‘I told you so, talagang tatakbo iyan,’” Drilon, vice chairman of the Liberal Party (LP), said in an interview over BomBo Radyo.

(I’ve been telling our countrymen and my party-mates to prepare because Senator Grace Poe will run for president. So let’s stop courting her. That’s why when this news came out yesterday, I said: “I told you so, she’s really running.)

READ: Drilon: LP should abandon pursuit of Grace Poe

Asked if Poe’s presidential bid would be a threat to LP’s bet, former Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II, the Senate leader said: “Lahat po iyan ay mga kandidato, at haharapin namin silang lahat dahilan kami po ay tatakbo sa ilalim ng plataporma ng malinis na pamumuno sa Daang Matuwid. ‘Yan po ang aming plataporma, ‘yung Daang Matuwid. Sila po, kung saan sila dadaan, ay problema po nila iyan.”

(They are all candidates and we will face them all because we will run under a clean, and straight path. That’s our platform. I don’t know what path they are going to take, that’s their problem)

Drilon was among those who earlier predicted Poe’s plan to run for president next year, along with Senators Serge Osmeña and Vicente “Tito” Sotto III.

READ: ‘Poe to run for President’

He made the prediction after the party, led by President Benigno Aquino III, failed to convince Poe to run with Roxas, who himself made the offer to the lady senator.

Despite this, the administration remained confident that Poe’s refusal to run with Roxas would not hamper his presidential bid.

In fact, Drilon said, Roxas is now talking with other prospective vice presidents like Camarines Sur Representative Leni Robredo, Batangas Governor Vilma Santos, and Senate Majority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano.

“Naguusap po, siguro malalaman natin bago matapos ang buwan kung sino finally ang magiging running mate ni Secretary Mar,” said the Senate leader.

(They are talking, maybe we will know before the end of the month who will be the running mate of Secretary Mar.)

READ: Roxas, Binay say they’re close to picking their running mates

Drilon said the LP would leave it up to Roxas to choose his vice president.

“Hahayaan namin, dahil importante na makasundo ni Secretary Mar ang kanyang magiging katandem, kung sino man ang kanyang mapupulso at magkakaroon ng kasunduan, iyan po ay iraratipika namin sa aming partido,” he said.

(We will let him choose because it is important that Secretary Mar is in good terms with whomever he will choose and then we will have an agreement and ratify it in our party.)

Poe is set to make an “important announcement” on Wednesday evening. Maila Ager/IDL