6 mayoral candidates, 6 others withdrew candidacies in Bulacan

Paombong Mayor Donato Marcos

MALOLOS CITY—Paombong Mayor Donato Marcos, the president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) and 11 other including five other mayoral candidates in Bulacan withdrew their candidacies.

Of the 12 who formally withdrew, only three were substituted, according to the Lawyer Elmo Duques, the provincial election supervisor in Bulacan.

The candidates who withdrew their candidacies are Pancho Ordanes, an independent candidates for the second congressional district of Bulacan, Lawyer Rustico De Belen, an independent mayoral candidate in the mountain town of Donya Remedios Trinidad (DRT).

Rolando Flores and Pablo Milan, both independent candidates for the mayor in the town of Baliwag and the city of Meycauayan, respectively; Reynaldo Santos, the incumbent vice mayor of Hagonoy who filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) last October for mayor under the Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban) banner; and Carla Paula Galvez Tan, the incumbent mayor of San Ildefonso town who earlier filed here COC with endorsement from the National Unity Party (NUP).

Atty. Rustico De Belen

Other who withdrew their candidacies are candidates for the municipal councilor’s position in their towns, namely Romeo Rodriguez (Independent, Baliwag), Modesto Espinoza and Kris Blas Ople San Jose who filed files their COC in October in Hagonoy, Leandro Celedonio of Pandi and Erlinda Sigua of the City of San Jose Del Monte.

Duque said that based on their records, Marcos is substitute by his wife Maryanne; while Celedonio and Sigua who are both running under the Liberal Party banner were substituted by Vicente Gatuz and Ananias Dicdican, respectively.

Duque added that some of the candidates withdrew their candidacies as early as October, but there are those that waited until the last two days like Marcos and Santos.

Mayor Carla Paula Galvez-Tan

Marcos, the standard bearer of LP in Paombong town is on his second consecutive term and is only being challenged by Lawyer Isagani Castro, an independent candidate who lost in the mayoral race in the past.

But on December 19, he filed his withdrawal and is substituted by his wife.

Sources said that Marcos’ withdrawal from the race in due to the fact that he was offered a post in the Department of Interior and Local Government.

Marcos was elected as mayor of Paombong in 2007, after serving the remainder of the term of the late Mayor Dominador Gonzales who died in 2005.

He was elected as president of the LMP Bulacan in 2007 and 2010; and last year, he was elected as president of the LMP national directorate.

Vice Mayor Rey Santos

As this developed, De Belen said that his withdrawal from mayoral in DRT is due to loss of interest and concern to continue his private law practice.  He served as head of the Bulacan Environment and Natural Resources Office from 2010 until his resignation last October.

In Hagonoy town, sources said that Vice Mayor Santos’ withdrawal from the mayoral race is due to financial constraints, but his close friends said that the vice mayor would like to focus his attention to his family. (Dino Balabo)