The League of Cities of the Philippines on Wednesday, Nov. 19, joined the Visayan Bloc in supporting President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. following accusations hurled against him by his sister, Senator Imee Marcos, of alleged drug use.
Presidential son and House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos denied his aunt’s accusation.
The LCP said its stands behind the president’s commitment to further empower local government units “in advancing public infrastructure, education, and health services, while upholding transparency and accountability in public governance”.
“As cities, we remain steadfast in fulfilling our mandate to serve the Filipino people and pursue programs that uplift communities. We are committed to aligning our efforts with the president’s initiatives and to keeping our focus on our shared mission of building a just, progressive, and resilient nation,” it added.
Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez said on Wednesday, Nov. 19, that about 45 members of the House Representative who are part of the Visayan Bloc are backing the president because of his unprecedented campaign against corruption that has not spared even his own allies.
The Visayan Bloc on Tuesday issued a statement of support for the president and “the anti-corruption crusade that he began”.
Benitez said he was not aware of moves towards a coup in the House, perhaps the rumors were being spread on social media by allies of former house speaker Martin Romualdez who want the status quo to remain.
“They are trying hard to promote continuity rather than change,” said Benitez, who did not support Romualdez.
He also said Senator Marcos’s accusing her brother of drug use at a huge Iglesia ni Kristo rally “begs the question on its purpose”.
She appears to be concerned for her brother but the way and the manner in which she did it is also detrimental to him, Benitez said
“So I’m confused on what her purpose is for doing that”, Benitez said.
He said 45 representatives from the Visayas signed the Visayan Bloc statement of support for Marcos and the number is expected to increase.
The reason why they are supporting the Marcos is because he is the only president in the history of the Philippines whose administration is investigating even his own allies and friends for corruption, which has not happened before, Benitez said.
“It shows a lot of character for him to do that,” Benitez said, noting that others investigate previous administrations, not their own.
“It shows his sincerity in solving and eliminating corruption,” Benitez said.
“This is unfolding in unprecedented magnitude,” he said, of the corruption probe.*