Metro Manila, Philippines – Senatorial candidates under the progressive Makabayan coalition admitted preparing for the “worse” in wooing voters in Davao, the bailiwick of Dutertes, but said they were banking on the support from some residents who gave them a “warm welcome” during their campaigning this week.
Teddy Casiño, former Bayan Muna party-list representative, said his group had a huge following in Davao City in previous elections, but said they would have to bring back the “people’s movement” after the Duterte presidency.
“Pagbalik namin sa Davao is also an effort to revive our organizations na inatake nang husto under the Duterte presidency. Hanggang sa ngayon, nandiyan pa rin, it’s really a struggle now to translate that into votes. Kailangan natin ma-rebuild,” Casiño told local reporters on Saturday, Feb. 22.
[Translation: Coming back to Davao is also an effort to revive our organizations attacked during the Duterte presidency. It’s still a struggle now to translate that into votes. We have to rebuild.]
Bayan Muna party-list lost for the first time in the 2022 elections. This pressures them to secure a seat in the midterm elections to avoid disqualification from participating in succeeding polls. It is among the party-list groups allied with Makabayan.
The coalition is known to be supportive of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment.
Bayan president and Makabayan campaign manager Renato Reyes Jr. said the impeachment is “a matter of principle for Makabayan and the endorsers and complainants will continue to push for this as a means of accountability.”
“The people in Davao, while aware of the impeachment process, are also interested in issues of high prices, low wages, social services, and alternatives to the bankrupt political system,” Reyes told NewsWatch Plus. “So we could see that the people were quite receptive to these issues.”
Seven of the 11 progressive candidates conducted house-to-house and sectoral visits on Friday.
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LOOK: Senatorial and party-list candidates from the Makabayan coalition campaigned in Davao City, the hometown of the Dutertes, on Friday, Feb. 21 | @bylancemejico #VoteWatch #Eleksyon2025
📸Makabayan pic.twitter.com/Bv60cQxCDx
— NewsWatch Plus PH (@newswatchplusph) February 21, 2025
