Palace: 2016 bets can now focus on platforms after SC ruling on Poe case

Presidential candidates Vice President Jejomar Binay, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Sen. Grace Poe-Llamanzares and Manuel “Mar” Roxas II during the Presidential Debates 2016 held in Capitol University in Cagayan de Oro City.
INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

The Supreme Court’s decision to allow Senator Grace Poe to run for president would finally turn the spotlight on issues and platforms that need to be talked about as the national elections draw near, Malacañang said on Saturday.

“Ang sigurong magandang dulot ng desisyon na ito ay wala ng parang mabigat na kwestiyon na parang nakasabit sa ibabaw ng isang kandidato at pwede nang talagang bigyan ng atensyon at pagusapan nang husto ang mga solusyon na nais i-promote o ipaabot ng iba’t ibang kandidato at sa paraan na ito magiging mas kalmado at mas masustansya ang usapan,” Communications Undersecretary Manolo Quezon said over state-run DZRB.

(The positive outcome of this decision is there are no more questions hounding a candidate, and they can now turn their attention to discussing the solutions they want the electorate to know about; this way, the discussions will be calmer and more substantive.)

Voting 9-6, the high tribunal voted to reverse the Commission on Elections’ decision to disqualify Poe from seeking the presidency in the May polls, ruling that senator is a natural-born Filipino citizen and has completed the 10-year residency requirement.

READ: SC rules in favor of Poe in DQ case

But while echoing President Benigno Aquino III’s remarks that the favorable SC decision will further boost Poe’s numbers in preference surveys, Quezon said it was not certain as to how long she could sustain it.

READ: Aquino: SC decision to boost Grace run

“Although, sinabi na nga ng Pangulo na let’s assume na magkaroon nga ng what they call a pump in the survey numbers for Senator Poe, ang tanong naman: for how long would it be? And how much would it be? At ‘yon ang hindi natin malalaman, of course, until the next survey,” he said.

(Although as proclaimed by the President that there would be a pump in numbers for Senator Poe, the question is for how long would it be. And how much would it be? And we will not know the answer to that, of course, until the next survey comes out.)

Quezon said the campaign of the administration bets will focus on delivering platforms and proposed solutions and will not be affected by the high court’s decision on Poe, as it was not within their control.

“Why will you be worrying too much about things that are not in your control? Binanggit nga ng Pangulo, ang prayoridad dito at ang dapat naman talagang pursigihin at ibalita pa, ipaabot ang kaalaman, at ipaliwanag sa taumbayan ang mga plano, at mga vision and plataporma ng mga kandidato,” he added.

(The President already mentioned that the candidates’ vision and platforms should be the meat of the discussions and news reports so that they may be explained to the people.) IDL

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