Mayoral bet denies asking another candidate to withdraw from May polls

By Nora Soriño
Iligan City Bureau Chief .

Iligan City — A mayoral candidate here has denied the talks going around that he asked another candidate for mayor to withdraw from the elections this coming May 13.

Marianito Alemania, yesterday clarified the rumors to media saying that it might be true that he and lawyer Dino Quijano had talked “privately.”

This was upon the initiative of the Quijano camp, he said, and then proceeded to relate how it came about. A certain Kim Romares of the lawyer’s camp had broached the matter of the two candidates to talk some matters out through Verna Padilla. The latter then relayed to him (Alemania), Quijano’s proporal “to talk about some matters” of which he also acceded.

About four days ago, Alemania said, they talked privately at Sunburst without Padilla and Romares as the two of them were left alone. There, Alemania related, the lawyer proposed to him that they make a “tie up” and make an agreement as the two of them are now the “front runners” in the race for mayor of the city as the camp of city mayor of Celso Regencia “is no longer winnable.”

He said he did not ask the lawyer to withdraw. “He’s a lawyer and why should I do that to a lawyer, or even to anybody,” he said.

He just replied he said that they “continue,” adding that Padilla even did not like the fact that it was the camp of the lawyer who “initiated” said talk but Padilla had footed the bill in Sunburst. Padilla, to note, is also a candidate for city councilor under Alemania’s ticket.

To note  Alemania is with the Nacionalista Party with incumbent Congressman Frederick Siao running for another term while Quijano’s party has Betzy Zalsos as his running mate for vice mayor, a lawyer-accountant.

The latter camp is called “One Iligan Party” and has fielded eight councilor bets even if it doesn’t have a candidate for congressman.