‘Yolanda’ debacle haunts the former DILG chief
TACLOBAN CITY- The An Waray party-list group dismissed as black propaganda linking the group with that of former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas who is running in this year’s midterm elections for senator.
Former congressman Florencio ‘Bem’ Noel said that while he respects Roxas both as a person and a politician, it is not fair to link him or to An Waray any affiliation.
“We are not political friends. We’ve never been (politically) aligned and that’s a fact,” Noel said in an interview.
The former congressman, who is the first nominee of the An Waray party-list group, was reacting to various posts in social media showing a photo of the party-list with that of Roxas.
Noel reminded the public when Roxas ran unsuccessfully for president in 2010, he supported the candidacy of Senator Grace Poe who both lost to eventual mayor, then Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.
Both Poe and Roxas are running in this Monday’s elections for senators with the former appears heading for a polls victory based on various surveys. Roxas, meanwhile, is out of the probable winners, surveys have indicated.
Roxas was largely blamed on his mishandling on the management after Tacloban City and the rest of the region was pummeled by super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ in November 8, 2013.
Noel lamented that their rivals are spinning baseless stories out to destroy the image of the An Waray party-list which is among the probable winners among party-list groups seeking for seats at the House of Representatives based on various surveys.
Meantime, Noel said that while they are happy with the surveys showing them as among the probable winners, they remain not be complacent until the counting of the votes on Monday.
“While we are happy with the results of the surveys, we are not depending on them as they just serve as a gauge,” he said.
Meantime, Noel said that they will focus on the aspect of providing livelihood to the families in the village as one of their priorities once reelected.
The An Waray party-list first nominee said that they will also continue their ‘One Visayas’ campaign that gears on helping the tourism industry of the region. (LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA, ROEL T. AMAZONA with reports from JOEY A. GABIETA)
