Statement on the Support by the Magdalo to my Senatorial Candidacy

It is humbling to be included in the list of senatorial candidates that the Magdalo are endorsing in the 2010 elections. With the support that the group is giving my candidacy, victory in this election is one more step closer to becoming a reality. Their support deserves nothing less than my most sincere thanks and appreciation.

This support is not anchored on mere electoral convenience or temporary converging interests. Belonging to the same generation, the Magdalo and I are both concerned on how the Philippines will proceed towards recovery and reform from the debilitating downward spiral of the country’s political culture and integrity in public service. The fate of the future generation rests on what the country’s leadership will do in leading this country further into the 21st Century. We want to play a relevant role in it.

The ideals of the Magdalo are not different from that of my own. While our professions would normally make us different as apples are to oranges, the ideals we are standing up for are one and the same---the welfare of the members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the modernization of the Philippine military, the pursuit of peace in Mindanao, the eradication of poverty and the restoration of trust in government through good governance.

Our alliance is not one between strangers. Being a son of a career military officer, I know by personal experience what the life of a soldier is, and the perspective that a soldier has with regard to government and society. The friendship I have with some of the members of the Magdalo were built decades before the existence of the Magdalo while others were forged from the commonality of principles that were made public in their first outing as a reform movement.

The support of the men and women of the Magdalo will not go unreciprocated. This is a symbiotic and synergistic relationship where both sides mutually benefit from each other and work towards a common objective which is the restoration of the people’s trust in government through a reformed, reoriented and rejuvenated governance.