Cayetano mulls independent VP runs

        If no prexy bet gets him

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

DAGUPAN CITY – Last term Senator Alan Peter Cayetano said he mulls to run as independent vice presidential bet in case he could not find a presidential tandem in two weeks’ time.

PERA, TRABAHO, KITA.  Senator Alan Peter Cayetano (red shirt) meditates last Tuesday with members of two vendor organizations inside the Malimgas Market in Dagupan City. The senator dropped by the city to give them P100 thousand as additional seed monies for their business ventures. Cayetano had given them for free in the past years hundreds of thousands of pesos of his micro-financing program to stave off these vendors from usurious lenders. Presently, the solon has 160 organization, primordially composed of vendors and public utility vehicles’ drivers and operators, that are beneficiaries of his  Pera, Trabaho, Kita or PTK program. He expects that they grow by 200 organizations before the May 2016 national election. MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

“Will, that is why we are considering an independent run,” when asked if one of the major presidential candidates did not get him in the ticket.

Aside from running independent, Cayetano cited his friends have been talking for a while with the party mates of Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte for the vice presidential motive of the solon. Roxas and Duterte have moist eyes on the presidency.

“Right now there are two groups na kinakausap namin. These of course the groups of Secretary Roxas,we have some informal talk sa mga kaibigan niya kaibigan ko. Kay Mayor Duterte naman so far he is not running. But some people close to him are also talking to people close to me because medyo may kahawig din ang pananaw namin sa pag dating sa pagastos ng pundo nailabas sa Metro Manila. So there is some common values, hindi lang ako makapagbigay ng date kasi,” he stressed.

He said he was hell bent before to run for the presidency but surveys and public opinions had given him an anaemic score.

The two weeks self declared deadline ensued, Cayetano said, because he did not run for the presidency where he could just tell anybody at his whims when he would run.

“Siguro if I was running in the presidency at ako ay nanliligaw sa VP puwede ako magbigay ng deadline. But some of my supporters telling me to run as an independent. So I am considering that also. Pero tingnan natin. Siguro mga two weeks,” he stressed.

When asked how he could wiggle out and runs for the vice presidential race amid fellow Nationalista party mates Senators Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and Antonio Trillanes IV nursing a desire to the same post, he said they could settle the kinks as they are closed with each other.

 “I hope we did not go our separate ways. I hope two of us withdraw from the race or run for the other post”.

He said any one of them can run against each other but doubts if they can get the party support.

“So, ayaw kung pangunahan ang kapartido ko. But I am hoping na maging solid kami”.

Cayetano, in the last survey of Pulse Asia, was statistically tied with Senator Chiz Escudero for the vice presidential race if Senator Grace Poe is stricken out in the same race. Poe aspires for the presidency and is rumoured to run in tandem with Escudero.

After Escudero and Cayetano, those in the vice presidential trails under the poll were Duterte (9%) , Ferdinand “Bong Bong” Marcos Jr (9%), Panfilo “Ping” Lacson (6%), Antonio Trillanes IV (5%) and Leni Robredo (1%).

Meanwhile, the senator was here last Wednesday to give additional P100 thousand seed monies for two market vendor organizations that have been beneficiaries of his micro financing program Pera, Trabaho, Kita or PTK.

In PTK, he started several years ago, he has been giving free funds to stave off the recipients from usurious lenders who become a burden of their business endeavours.

 He said he has already 160 organizations nationwide that primordially composed of vendors and public utility vehicles’ drivers.

“Whether I run or not whether magkaroon ako ng chance o hinde. We now have 160 groups. I want to reach 200 groups before election (in May 2016). I like in a year or two may 1000 groups’ ito. I am hopeful pick up ng government ito”.