All for one? No, says San Juan City Mayor Guia Gomez (center). According to Gomez, her son Senator JV Ejercito (left) and former partner Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada (right) are not bound by her endorsement of Mar Roxas. INQUIRER FILES
San Juan City Mayor Guia Gomez on Monday threw her support for presidential aspirant Mar Roxas, giving a major boost to the candidacy of the Liberal Party standard-bearer.
But Gomez quickly maintained that her support for Roxas was not binding on her son, Sen. JV Ejercito, and her former partner, ex-President and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada.
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“It was a difficult decision because of (my) family, but the entire city of San Juan and Mar Roxas know where my heart belongs,” Gomez told reporters after she and Liberal Party standard-bearer led the weekly flag-raising ceremony at City Hall.
“(Roxas) has been a constant friend of San Juan,” she said.
She also praised Roxas who showed “genuine concern” for her constituents when he was still interior secretary.
“Among the national government officials, he was always the first to ask me about our situation in San Juan when there’s a typhoon,” she said.
Roxas, who was the guest speaker at the early morning event, expressed his elation over Gomez’s support, but said he would not add to her burden by asking her help in soliciting the support of the influential Ejercito-Estrada clan.
READ: Estrada: Roxas is ‘most qualified’ for presidency
“This will have a big impact (on my candidacy) because Mayor Guia is a symbol of an outstanding mayor in our country, a symbol of a woman leader and a symbol of those who truly care for the masses,” he said.
“This will definitely reverberate (throughout the country),” he added.