MISAMIS Oriental Gov. Yevgeny Vincente Emano has declared he would be seeking reelection next year, the capitol confirmed in a statement sent to this paper yesterday. The declaration came days after Rep. Peter Unabia of the province’s 1st District announced that the administration Liberal Party (LP) would field former vice governor and now Villanueva Mayor Julio Uy as its standard bearer, and Balingasag Mayor Alexis Quina as Uy’s running mate in next year’s elections in the province. The capitol has yet to announce who Emano’s running mate would be although the province’s vice governor, Jose Mari Pelaez, was the governor’s running mate in the 2013 elections. Jesus Valleser, a capitol consultant on media affairs, said Emano made the declaration of his reelecition bid amid the cheers of supporters at the capitol during the culmination of first anniversary of the Misorcares program over the weekend. Valleser quoted Emano as telling the crowd that he would seek reelection “if only to ensure that the poorest of the poor will continue to get more benefits from their government.” Reads part of the capitol statement attributed to Emano: “If only for them to continue to have peace of mind whenever they, their children, and loved ones are sick and in need of hospitalization and medicines; if only for them to feel that they are loved and that someone is taking care of them; if only to ensure that Misorcares will continue to function for the poorest of the poor, I am officially announcing that I am running for reelection.” Next year’s elections would be a big challenge for the governor who is surrounded by political enemies coming from the province’s two districts. At the 1st district are Rep. Unabia and Mayor Quina, former members of the Padayon Pilipino who are now with the administration party, and the Guingona family who has turned Gingoog City into a political bailiwick. At the second district, are Mayor Uy and his wife Juliette, the representative of the 2nd District. Another challenge is, aside from having no congressman on the side of the Padayon Pilipino, Rep. Unabia has claimed that 17 of the province’s 25 mayors, including Gingoog and El Salvador cities, are now with the administration party. But the relatively young Emano has been making use of his youth and stamina––he is working harder, and has stepped up the number of capitol outreaches to the villages apparently to reach out and rub elbows with as many people as possible. Emano has also capitalized on his pet program, Misorcares, that ensures that Misamisnons in need of health care would not spend anything for hospitalization and medicines, and that families who have lost loved ones would receive “death benefits,” including coffins. He told the capitol crowd that the criticisms directed at Misorcares “gave me doubts and fears at first.” “But when I looked in the eyes of the poor, it gave me a stronger resolve to move on despite the wishes of our political enemies for us to fail,” said Emano, adding the same criticisms were what made him decide to seek reelection next year. He added: “Never again shall the poor dread the thought of hospitalization and the cost of medication. Never again shall victims of calamities be on a quandary as to where to go to seek for help. Never again shall the poor feel lesser because they cannot give decent burials for their dead relatives.”