More prominent figures in the country's political scene have filed their bids for national positions on the sixth day of filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) at the Sofitel Harbor Garden Tent in Pasay City on Wednesday.
Senator Panfilo Lacson and Senate President Vicente Sotto III have filed their COC for president and vice president, respectively.
In an interview, Lacson said their tandem aims to reinstate the trust of the people in the government.
“Ability, Honesty, and Courage. The Lacson-Sotto tandem aims to restore the people's trust in our government,” he added.
Lacson is running under the Partido para sa Demokratikong Reporma (PDR), while Sotto is representing the Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC).
On the other hand, former Makati City congressman Monsour del Rosario (PDR) and former Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista (NPC) also filed their COCs for senator.
Meanwhile, Norberto Gonzales filed his candidacy for president. He served as National Security Adviser and Department of National Defense chief during the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Senator Joel Villanueva also filed his COC for a second term.
Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) directed all regional and provincial commanders to place a sufficient number of their police personnel who can be tapped for peace and order operations on the last day of the COC filing period on Friday.
PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar also called on the candidates to take the lead in preventing the filing of their COCs and CONAs into a super spreader event.
“On the part of the PNP, I have already instructed our regional and provincial directors to place on standby enough police personnel that would respond to any eventuality as candidates and party-list groups beat the deadline,” he added.
Police forces across the country were earlier ordered to coordinate with the Comelec to ensure peace and order and enforce public health safety in the filing of COCs and CONAs from October 1 to 8. (with Lloyd Caliwan/PNA)
