Alunan confirmed his inclusion in the President’s 12-man slate during the campaign rally of the ruling PDP-Laban in Laguna.
“It is a huge honor to be part of the President’s team for May 2019,” Alunan, one of PDP-Laban’s guest candidates, said during the event.
Duterte’s lineup is currently composed of five members of the PDP-Laban and seven guest candidates.
In his speech, the President described Alunan as “a thinking guy,” vouching for the former government official as “the brightest” Cabinet member under the administration of former President Fidel Ramos.
“You can’t see someone brighter during the time of Ramos. He was the brightest Cabinet member,” Duterte said.
“And he knows best what he’s doing because he was once upon a time the DILG secretary. Secretary Alunan,” he added.
Alunan also served as Tourism secretary under then President Corazon Aquino.
This is the second time that Alunan has attempted to run for senator after losing in the 2016 Senate race.
Currently, he is running under the Bagumbayan Party of Senator Richard Gordon.
Aside from Alunan, other guest candidates being endorsed by Duterte are folk singer Freddie Aguilar, Taguig Rep. Pia Cayetano, Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos and reelectionist senators Juan Edgardo Sonny” Angara, Joseph Victor Ejercito and Cynthia Villar.
Duterte is endorsing five senate bets from PDP-Laban, namely former presidential top aide Christopher Go, former presidential political adviser Francis Tolentino, PDP-Laban president and reelectionist senator Aquilino Pimentel III, Maguindanao Rep. Zajid Mangudadatu, and former Philippine National Police chief Roland dela Rosa.
Earlier, Duterte said he would not be endorsing two former senators who were linked to the multi-billion-peso pork barrel scam, but the Palace said he probably felt they didn’t need his help to win.
Former Senator Jinggoy Estrada still faces plunder and graft charges in connection to the pork barrel scam, but the anti-graft court, the Sandiganbayan, acquitted Senator Bong Revilla in December 2018, saying prosecutors failed to present evidence linking him to the millions of pesos in kickbacks that lawmakers allegedly received
