Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III files his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) as the representative of Marikina’s first district. —Photo by Faith Argosino/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Marikina City Mayor Marcelino Teodoro has clarified that the camp of Senator Koko Pimentel—his opponent in the race for the congressional seat of the city’s first district—left their alliance as early as July 28.
In a statement on Monday, Teodoro said Pimentel’s departure from the alliance actually led to the team not having a candidate for Markina’s 1st District representative.
Teodoro said this as Pimentel, in an interview after filing his certificate of candidacy (COC) on Sunday, said that he was “surprised” about the Mayor’s decision to run for the same post that he is aiming for.
READ: Pimentel surprised by Teodoro’s bid as his rival in Marikina’s 1st district
“I would just like to set the record straight: Last July 28, if I’m not mistaken, (Pimentel’s camp) left our political alliance. Based on what I remember, that was three or four months ago,” Teodoro said.
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“They were the first to get out of the alliance that’s why we lost a candidate for Marikina’s first district,” he added.
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Teodoro further accused the Pimentel camp of trying to be an independent bloc so that they can align themselves with his family, and the family of their political opponent, the Quimbos.
“What they want is to be independent candidates, so that they can work with both parties, the Teodoros and Quimbos. Honestly, that’s the reason why I was forced to run for the first district.”
When asked on Sunday about his relationship with Teodoro, Pimentel revealed that it was Teodoro who encouraged him to run as the city’s first district representative.
Pimentel said he was surprised by Teodoro’s action, saying they did not discuss this move.
Former Marikina lawmaker Miro Quimbo believes there was an effort to drive politicians within his family—particularly his wife, Marikina (2nd District) Rep. Stella Quimbo—away from city’s political arena.
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According to Quimbo, he and Rep. Quimbo have previously agreed that only one of them would run for office at a time, so that they can attend to their children. However, Quimbo said the city government headed by Teodoro was not cooperative in implementing programs.