Razon picks Isko as running mate but … Jeannette Andrade Philippine Daily Inquirer
November 08, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—Just Days ahead of the formal filing of certificates of candidacy, former presidential adviser on the peace process Avelino Razon Jr.’s bid to become Manila’s next mayor has hit a minor snag.
During the Balitaan sa Tinapayan forum, Razon said he would be running with Vice Mayor Isko Moreno (Francisco Domagoso in real life).
“Isko and I have talked about this,” he told reporters.
This was despite Moreno’s announcement during his 35th birthday celebration on Oct. 24 at the Rizal Coliseum football stadium that he would be the running mate of incumbent Mayor Alfredo Lim, who is seeking reelection next year.
A source privy to the talks between Moreno and Razon told the Inquirer that the two met some time in February before the latter made up his mind to run for mayor.
“He [Moreno] said yes to Razon when asked if he would [like] to be his running mate,” the source who asked for anonymity said.
Sought for comment, Moreno told the Inquirer that there was nothing wrong with Razon’s choice of him as a running mate although he stressed that he would be seeking reelection next year alongside Lim.
According to Moreno, his party, Asenso Manileño, has officially chosen Lim and himself to be its official candidates in the mayoral and vice mayoral race.
“We cannot stop other candidates from claiming me as a running mate. Anybody can say that and I cannot stop them,” Moreno told the Inquirer, adding that Atienza could also lay claim to being his running mate.
“What is important is the official pronouncement,” he said.
He confirmed, however, that he and Razon did meet and that he had agreed to be his running mate. But at the same time, he stressed that he would stand by his party’s decision and the promise he made to Lim to be his running mate.
Meanwhile, Razon said he would be filing his certificate of candidacy with the Commission on Elections on Nov. 27.
This will be his first time to run for public office, something he sees as his edge over his rivals—Lim and Environment Secretary Lito Atienza—who both served several terms as Manila mayor.
“They each have [several] years of experience [as mayor] but neither of them had a vision for the city,” Razon said of the two officials in a previous interview with the Inquirer.
He added that Atienza focused on beautifying the city while Lim was now concentrated on erasing what his predecessor had done, thus doubling the city’s expenses.
“There are a lot of things Lim may have done for the city but in totality, these are still insufficient for Manileños, especially for the less fortunate in the areas of health care and education,” Razon said.
He added that as chief of the then Western Police District, he served under both Lim and Atienza. This, he said, allowed him to observe their performance in office and also provided him with an idea of the city’s primary problem—urban decay.
“Atienza had a good plan of resurrecting Manila but it was all on the surface. He was not able to touch on the basic needs of health, education, livelihood, and housing,” he said.
Razon, who grew up on Oroquieta Street in Sta. Cruz, said he wanted to bring back the Manila of the ’50s and ’60s when the city was truly the nation’s capital and business hub.
“Other cities in Metro Manila, even Taguig City, have left behind Manila. Other cities progressed and developed and Manila was left in urban decay,” he said.
He reminisced that during that period, Manila was the center of business, particularly Binondo and Raon.
“Why can’t we bring that back and make Manila the true capital as it should be?” This question, he said, was what drove him to seek the mayor’s seat.
But Razon said he would be bringing to Manila a different kind of politics. “More on sacrifice. Personal expense, no personal gain,” he added.
