3 weeks ago
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EJ Macababbad - The Philippine Star
February 22, 2025 | 12:00am
TV host and game show icon Willie Revillame filed his certificate of candidacy for a Senate seat at the Manila Hotel tent on Oct. 8, 2024.
Philstar.com / Martin Ramos
MANILA, Philippines — Denying ties to former president Rodrigo Duterte, television host and senatorial bet Willie Revillame said he is running as an independent candidate.
Revillame made the claim yesterday during his first press conference since the campaign began, offering scant details about his legislative agenda.
Duterte personally approached Revillame in 2021 to gun for a Senate seat under the administration banner, but his contract with GMA Network hindered him from running at the time.
Pushing through with his candidacy this cycle, Revillame said he will not be part of the nine-man slate that Duterte recently endorsed.
“I don’t have a political party. I’m not affiliated with the government or PDP-Laban. I am an independent candidate and my party is the Filipino people, whom I will listen to,” he told reporters in Filipino.
The television personality also refused to comment on his stance about the looming impeachment trial of Duterte’s daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte.
“I will not comment on that right now because I’m not a senator yet and I don’t know the pieces of evidence to be weighed in,” Revillame stressed. “I need to see first the impeachment complaint in its entirety.”
Abby bats for LGUs
Wooing voters in Bacolod City, outgoing Makati mayor Abby Binay assured local chief executives and constituents of local government units (LGUs) across the country that she will be their “voice in the Senate” if elected in May.
“It is because as a mayor, I know all the problems that you face everyday. I know it like the palm of my hand. I can totally relate to your daily problems and I know your concerns and your issues,” she told the crowd during a campaign sortie in the city.
Binay is among the 12 senatorial candidates running under President Marcos’ Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas ticket.
She may be replaced by her husband in Makati, Rep. Luis Campos Jr., who is slugging it out with Binay’s elder sister Nancy for the mayoralty.
Dela Rosa slams tri-committee
Coming to the defense of Diehard Duterte Supporter or DDS vloggers, re-electionist Sen. Ronald dela Rosa called on the House tri-committee probing the prevalence of fake news to also invite pro-administration social media influencers and vloggers.
“If they are truly interested in finding a solution to what they call fake news or whatever the real objective of their investigation is, if it’s not to pressure vloggers who are critical of the administration, then they should invite everyone, including the vloggers who support the administration,” he said.
Hontiveros focused on 2025
Meanwhile, Sen. Risa Hontiveros would neither confirm nor deny whether she would run for president in 2028, saying the decision must be done in consultation with fellow opposition members.
“The opposition now is focused on the comeback campaigns of senators Kiko Pangilinan and Bam Aquino,” Hontiveros said on the sidelines of the opening of the Tandang Sora Women’s Museum in Quezon City Wednesday night.
Pangilinan is running under the Liberal Party, while Aquino is under the Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino. — Delon Porcalla, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Marc Jayson Cayabyab
