Drilon: Roxas still uncontested LP bet, but PNoy can still ‘cast a wider net’

Senate President Franklin Drilon. Photo courtesy of Drilon’s official Facebook page.

MANILA — Senate President Franklin Drilon said that there’s no need to hold a convention to decide Liberal Party’s (LP) standard-bearer, since Interior Secretary Mar Roxas is the only LP member showing any interest to run for president in 2016.

According to Drilon, the only thing left to discuss is LP’s senatorial slate.

“There is a convention mentioned in our laws, but given the reality that only Secretary Roxas has expressed an intention to run for the presidency, I don’t see any need for a convention,” Drilon told the media in a press conference at the Luneta Hotel.

The need to hold a convention only arises if someone from the same party expresses his or her desire to run for president as well. So far, Roxas is uncontested.

Aside from Roxas, Aquino has met with Sen. Grace Poe to talk about the possibilities of joining LP in 2016. Drilon defended the President’s move to woo an independent candidate to join their party, saying PNoy can still “cast a wider net.”

“The President is not only the chair of the Liberal Party, he is also the President of the country,” Drilon said. “He had a platform when he came into power, and that is the platform of good governance, and it is natural for him to look for candidates who in his judgment can continue the platform and principles on which he has governed the country for the last five years.”

President Benigno Aquino III, as head of LP, is expected to name his party’s official presidential bet on July 27th — his last State of the Nation Address (SONA).