Former Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez categorically said he is running for mayor of Bacolod in the 2022 polls, sources at a lunch meeting with him Friday, July 16, said.
Benitez, however, could not be reached for confirmation.
He reportedly confirmed that he is running for mayor at a lunch attended by about 60 members of the Bacolod business community at the Nature’s Village Resort in Talisay City.
Panchit Cajili Cuaycong, in a Facebook post, said Benitez publicly announced for the first time that he is running for mayor of Bacolod.
“He told me he is running,” Manuel Lamata, president of the United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines, also said.
Benitez, former representative of the third district of Negros Occidental, is the provincial consultant for economic affairs.
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, Vice Governor Jeffrey Ferrer and the mayors of Negros Occidental, and various groups in Bacolod have been urging him to run for mayor of the city.
However, when he registered to vote in Bacolod in April, Benitez said he had yet to decide whether he will run for mayor.
Three persons affiliated with the Grupo Progreso party of Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia have filed their opposition to the registration of Benitez as a voter of the city.
A hearing at the COMELEC office in Bacolod City is set Monday, July 19.*