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Erin Tañada, Leila De Lima and Teddy Baguilat formalize bid for House seats. INQUIRER.net / John Eric Mendoza
MANILA, Philippines — The spirit of volunteerism can help the progressives win in the 2025 elections, Mamamayang Liberal Party-list third nominee Atty. Erin Tañada said on Friday.
Tañada recounted the volunteer movement that sparked for the presidential campaign of former Vice President Leni Robredo and other candidates in the 2022 elections.
He also pointed out how the situation from the 2019 elections gradually changed.
“In 2022, I was not a candidate but I was in the campaign team of VP Leni, we saw that the situation gradually changed and volunteerism showed to campaign for the candidacy of Leni, Kiko, and other senators,” Tañada said in a mix of Filipino and English during in a forum.
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The volunteerism, dubbed as the “Pink Movement,” saw the rise of supporters launching different activities and programs in every campaign sortie and political event.
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“Although it may not be enough, we think that in the upcoming elections, if we harness it again together with other progressive groups, this volunteerism can push through. It may not be all, but progressive party-lists and senators can win in the elections,” Tañada added.
Tañada also said that voter’s education is important in an election campaign, acknowledging that they will go against rich poll aspirants.
Meanwhile, the party-list third nominee also shared their campaign experience during the 2019 elections where he ran as senator. He said that supporters were afraid to campaign for them.
“The situation before was difficult under the Duterte administration, red-tagging was used against us. Even President Duterte red-tagged me and yet, we saw that because of that atmosphere, supporters got scared to go out and campaign for us,” Tañada said in a mix of Filipino and English.
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Former president Rodrigo Duterte openly quipped and mocked the members of the “Otso Diretso” slate, who were all staunch critics of him, saying that their slate will go straight to hell.
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Tañada ran under the slate, alongside senatorial aspirant Bam Aquino, and Akbayan Party-list first nominee Chel Diokno. The slate did not secure any seat in the “Magic 12.”