Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia said Monday night that the province will set a new record high potential margins of victory of over one million votes in the coming polls for Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) standard-bearer Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) vice presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.
“You do the math by comparison, I think we will be greater than what can be the previous margins of votes, lamang, and it also helps BBM and Inday Sara are way ahead over their next [closest rival]…and so certainly we would also have to give that tribute back to the UniTeam,” Garcia said when asked if the UniTeam tandem potential margins of victory in Cebu in the May 9 polls would exceed a million.
Garcia, leader of the One Cebu local party, made this remark during a chance interview with reporters following the UniTeam mega festival rally at the City di Mare, Filinvest Grounds along SRP Coastal Road.
Led by Garcia, Lakas-CMD led by its president and House Majority Leader Martin G. Romualdez, and Tingog party-list headed by Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez, the rally was reportedly the biggest rally ever assembled for UniTeam in the current campaign.
“I do not wish to give numbers, but if we do a little review and that happened in the past, in 2004 we delivered, and we talked about votes, a margin of 1.2 million, margin of GMA (Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) over FPJ (Fernando Poe Jr.),” Garcia said.
“If you recall she won the presidency in 2004, due [to] the margin of about 1.1 or 1.2 [million] and that is why she took her oath of office here,” she said of Arroyo.
In her conservative estimate, Garcia said at least 300,000 people attended the rally in Cebu City.
“Ngayon I’m governor, the mayor of Cebu City, the mayor of Lapu-Lapu City, the mayor of Mandaue city and I representing 44 towns and six component cities have now thrown our support behind the UniTeam so kaya for the first time, we have this One Cebu island phenomenon,” Garcia said. With Rey E. Requejo
(Now I am the governor, together with the mayors of Cebu, Lapu-lapu and Mandaue cities, we represent 44 towns and six compnent cities that have all thrown support to the UniTeam. For the first time, we have this One Cebu phenomenon.)
The Philippine Coastwise Shipping Association, Inc. (PCSA), the country’s largest shipping association, meanwhile threw its full support to Marcos Jr.
The association is comprised of Filipino ship owners/operators that operate more than 700 ships serving thousands of passengers and transporting cargoes nationwide.
A one-page manifesto of support, signed by Edgardo Nicolas, administrator of PCSA and its officers and members, said the group aspires for a stronger, competitive, safe, efficient and robust Philippine domestic shipping industry which is a vital component in attaining inclusive growth and socio-economic progress. With Rey E. Requejo
