Actor starts making presence felt in Camarines Sur

PILI, Camarines Sur—Aga Muhlach, one of the most recognizable faces in Philippine show business, caused a stir in the fourth district of the province after he registered as a voter there last Monday.

At dinner hosted by the governor, Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte, Muhlach said while he registered as a voter in San Jose, Camarines Sur, he was keeping mum on whether or not he was running for a seat in the House to represent the province’s fourth district, long held by the Fuentebella clan.

The dinner hosted for Muhlach, however, had all the trimmings of a political event. Aside from the governor, Vice Gov. Fortunato Peña and other local officials were present.

The country’s election laws require candidates to be registered voters and residents for at least six months of the place where they would seek election to public office.

Muhlach said his father, who belonged to the Amador and Borja clans, traces his roots in the towns of Goa and San Jose.

The actor said he had been visiting San Jose since he was young to bond with his relatives.

Last month, Muhlach and Villafuerte stood as sponsors for 216 couples during a mass wedding in San Jose. On Monday, Muhlach again stood as godfather of 300 babies baptized in a church in the town before he proceeded to register as voter and resident of the town.

A source, who declined to be identified for lack of authority to speak on the matter, said Muhlach was also building a house in San Jose to establish residence there.

Deputy Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella is on his last term as representative of the fourth district and Muhlach’s appearance opened the floodgates for speculations that he would seek election to replace Fuentebella.

The Fuentebellas marked 100 years in politics in 2007. The clan keeps a tight hold on the fourth district with the deputy speaker’s wife Evelyn being mayor of Sangay town, his son Arnie being mayor of Tigaon town and a nephew, Emmanuel F. Llaguno, being member of the provincial board representing the fourth district.

San Jose, about 60 kilometers northeast of Naga City, is a fourth- class municipality with an annual income of P20-P30 million, 21,471 voters and a population of 35,472 in 29 villages.