Eastern Samar may just be the poster boy of unity among the provinces in Region 8 in the forthcoming midterm elections.
We say this as we observe from our political wind vane the flow of air coming from that part of Eastern Visayas, with the likely patching up of previous differences and running as a team of House of Representatives Minority Leader Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan as congressional candidate and Governor Ben Evardone as gubernatorial candidate in the elections next year.
In fact, a delegation of 58 local officials from Eastern Samar recently visited House Speaker Martin Romualdez, the unchallenged political kingpin of Eastern Visayas, in his office to present him with a manifesto urging the administration to embrace the Libanan-Evardone team-up.
The delegation included Eastern Samar’s vice governor, Maricar Goteesan, 13 provincial board members, 19 town mayors, and 19 presidents of the Association of Barangay Captains.
Libanan and Evardone were also at the Speaker’s office to meet with the local officials of their province, and in a way, to receive Martin’s blessing for their coming election campaigns. Libanan is currently a member of the House (Party-list, 4Ps) and its majority floor leader, while Evardone handles executive functions at the kapitolyo as governor of the province.
Responding to the manifesto, Libanan said, “We are deeply honored and humbled by the declarations of support.”
“We—Governor Evardone and I—are determined to combine our efforts so that we can improve in a big way the living standards, social conditions, and economic opportunities for individuals and communities in Eastern Samar,” Libanan said.
Libanan sees himself as staging a grand comeback as he seeks Eastern Samar’s lone congressional district seat in 2025.
He represented the same district in Congress for nine years from 1998 to 2007, and was one-time provincial vice governor.
Meanwhile, Governor Evardone is set to clinch his third and last term as provincial governor.
Last May, Evardone resigned from the PDP Laban to join the political party of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP). The PFP has lately been forging alliances with other political parties, such as the Lakas CMD, Nationalist People’s Coalition and the Nacionalista Party.
Apart from being Speaker of the House and the President’s first cousin, Romualdez is also the acknowledged political leader of the entire Eastern Visayas region. He represents the first district of Leyte in the legislature.
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