Drilon prefers LP bet to lead administration's 2016 slate

The administration's standard-bearer should come from the Liberal Party, Senate President Franklin Drilon said Saturday, amid reports of a possible team-up with independent Sen. Grace Poe. 

 

"We have a very deep bench in the LP. My preference, of course, is that a LP card-carrying member should be the candidate," Drilon, vice chairman of the party, said. 

 

Drilon however admitted that President Benigno Aquino III, being party chairman, is free to talk to other potential candidates, including Senator Poe. 

 

"I wouldn’t be surprised, I would expect discussions to be done behind closed doors, but I am not a participant in such things," Drilon said. 

 

Earlier this month, President Aquino met with Poe to discuss possible 2016 election alliances and candidacies. 

 

Poe recently said that she is being wooed by Interior Secretary Mar Roxas to be his running mate in the 2016 national elections. The senator however said she would prefer to run as an independent candidate if she decides to pursue a higher government position. 

Poe ran under the administration's senatorial slate in the 2013 elections, where she received the most votes among 33 candidates.

 

Drilon also advised aspiring presidential candidates not to rely on their popularity in election surveys. 

 

"Do not only look at the survey today but also at the three surveys ago and see how it behaves. If you see a downward trend, then you better watch out," he said. 

 

According to a Social Weather Stations survey published last month, Senator Poe was the likely candidate to beat the top contender, Vice President Jejomar Binay, in the 2016 presidential polls. 

 

Poe enjoyed a 10-percent surge from her previous 21 percent rating in December to 31 percent in March, while Binay's ratings dipped by one percent from 37 percent.

Roxas, who is expected to be the LP's presidential candidate in 2016, had a score of 15 percent in the latest survey against 19 percent in December. — Kathrina Charmaine Alvarez/JDS, GMA News