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Raissa Robles

Main opposition party picks Lacson to oppose Arroyo, denting hopes of Poe

Senator Panfilo Lacson yesterday was named the presidential candidate for the Philippines' biggest opposition party, the Struggle of the Filipino Masses (LDP), denting the political hopes of popular actor Fernando Poe Jnr.

Poe, widely acknowledged as the most popular candidate, suddenly entered the presidential race last week and has refused to talk to Senator Lacson about a possible merging of political forces.

The movie star is the best friend of former president Joseph Estrada, who was ousted in 2001 and is detained on corruption charges. Estrada had long prodded Poe to run for office.

The possibility that Poe could pick Senator Lacson as his running mate - and therefore unite all opposition forces under one ticket - was dismissed by his camp.

His spokesman, Senator  Vicente Sotto, said Poe favoured having a woman senator as his vice-presidential candidate.

Senator Sotto insisted that 'FPJ [Poe] is a candidate of the people, not of the opposition, and will not submit to a selection process'.

But the impasse within the opposition could spoil Poe's chances for victory and might turn the election into a fight between Aksyon Demokratiko Party leader Raul Roco and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Congressman Agapito Aquino, a Lacson supporter, acknowledged that 'two different candidates from the opposition could split votes'.

LDP president Edgardo Angara was noticeably absent yesterday from Senator Lacson's nomination.  Mr Angara had earlier expressed support for Poe and promised him the backing of the LDP, a move which was criticised by other party officials because they were not consulted.

'He wants dictatorship,' Senator Lacson said of Mr Angara, who had insisted that Poe was more likely to win, given his immense popularity.

The latest survey results showing Poe taking the lead seemed to bear Mr Angara out. Last month, even before declaring his candidacy, Poe was the choice of 25 per cent of 1,200 respondents  in a survey conducted by a private pollster.  Second  at 24 per cent was  Senator Noli de Castro, a former newsreader who has yet to make up his mind on whether to run.

Mr Roco got 18 per cent, followed by Mrs Arroyo with 17 per cent. Mr Lacson was a distant 10 per cent.

Even Poe, however, has acknowledged that popularity alone will not win an election. 'I need a [political] party to win,' he said earlier this week.

Only two small opposition parties - the PDP-Laban and Estrada's Partidong Masang Pilipino - have officially adopted him as candidate.

Party machinery is needed to bring voters to election precincts and guard against fraud - issues such as vote-buying and bribery of election officials continue to be major concerns in the country.

Businessman Eduardo Cojuangco's Nationalist People's Coalition Party has yet to officially declare its support for Poe, although party sources earlier hinted this was forthcoming.

Going by Estrada's experiences in political exercises, Poe would need the support of Mr Cojuangco and the LDP to win.

In 1992, Estrada was also tagged as the most popular and therefore most likely candidate to win. But lacking funding and the machinery, Estrada accepted a downgrade and ran as Mr Cojuangco's vice-presidential candidate.



Senator's nomination a blow to actor