Alejano on Gloria Arroyo’s Plan to Run for Senator in 2019, “I Can Easily Beat Her”

Former President and Pampanga 2nd District representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is likely to run for senator in the 2019 elections. This is now the spreading rumors within the political circle, as she continues to be a heavyweight in Philippine politics. After hearing this, Rep. Gary Alejano said she will not win, and that he can easily beat her.

“The odds of former president GMA to run for senator in 2019 is very high, considering that she is very visible since President Duterte was elected to office. And given this scenario, I think she can easily win.” Economist Solita Monsod, also known as Mareng Winnie said in GMA 7’s morning show “Unang Hirit” on Tuesday, March 6.

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“Legally speaking, she is allowed to hold a senatorial seat at any given time. After all, she was elected to the Lower House. If you can recall, she moved to PDP-Laban last October, leaving her own party (Lakas-CMD) she has founded. Can you imagine that?” She added. However, Rep. Alejano has a different point of view on this issue.

“Iginagalang ko ang sinuman na naniniwalang kaya pa manalo ni Rep. Gloria Arroyo bilang senador. Pero kung tatakbo nga siya sa 2019, at kung tatakbo din ako, kayang kaya ko siyang talunin. Alam naman natin na siya ay may bahid na ng corruption, samantalang ako ay malinis.” Rep. Alejano said in an ambush interview, Wednesday.

(I respect people who believe that Rep. Gloria Arroyo can still win as senator. But if she will run, and if I will also run, I can easily beat her. We all know that she has been involved in corruption, while I am clean.)

Arroyo, 70, was first elected senator in 1992 and was re-elected in 1995. She was elected vice president in 1998, and became the president in 2001 via EDSA People Power 2, which ousted then-President Joseph “Erap” Estrada. She was re-elected as president in 2004 via controversial win against the late actor, Fernando Poe, Jr. (FPJ).

In 2010, after her second term as president ended and was replaced by Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, Arroyo ran for Congress and won. She was arrested for electoral fraud in November 2011, while she was confined at St. Luke's Medical Center at Taguig. Nevertheless, she was released in July 2012 after posting bail.



But in October 2012, Arroyo was arrested again for alleged misused of $8.8 million in lottery funds. Despite being under hospital arrest, she was re-elected to Congress In the 2016 elections, On July 19, 2016, barely a month after President Rodrigo Duterte took oath, the Supreme Court (SC) acquitted Arroyo over her plunder cases via 11-4 vote.

Contributed by Renato Pasayao