Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Ampatuans go for Noynoy

It was a family reunion of sorts for the Ampatuans following their transfer to Camp Bagong Diwa.
Ampatuan Jr., principal accused in the mass murder, was joined by his father Andal Sr. and former ARMM governor Zaldy at the jail.
The three Ampatuans arranged for a news conference inside the jail.
Journalists were expecting the three Ampatuans to comment on the developments surrounding the charges against them but to their surprise, their statements turned political.
“The whole Ampatuan family is supporting Noynoy,” Andal Jr. told reporters in Filipino declaring their
support for Liberal Party (LP) presidential candidate Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III.
Andal Jr. added the family is also supporting the candidacy of LP vice presidential bet Sen. Manuel Roxas II.
“This is our decision. We will support Sen. Noynoy since we see from him that he would change the system and obtain justice under his government,” Andal Jr. said.
The Ampatuan patriarch, for his part, issued a statement criticizing Nacionalista Party (NP) presidential bet Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. and other candidates for blaming them for the massacre.
“It really hurts us that Sen. Manny Villar and other politicians are accusing our family over the murders. We are innocent and we should not be used for any political propaganda,” Andal Sr. said.
The former Maguindanao governor though did not identify the other candidates and the political parties accusing them. “The family will not support them,” he warned.
Andal Sr. appealed to candidates not to use the family for their political agenda and just allow the courts to decide on their fate.
Aquino, on the other hand, said he was not seeking any endorsement from the Ampatuans.
“We never talked to him (Andal Jr.), and we are not seeking his endorsement,” Aquino said.
He said the “endorsement” of the Ampatuans came as a surprise. “Is that a joke?” Aquino asked.
“In fact, we have been victims of cheating in Maguindanao in May 2007,” he said.
The LP also branded as “a sick joke,” the endorsement of the Ampatuans.
“If this was a way for the Ampatuans to instantly repay the Arroyo regime for the legally questionable and suspect and undue haste by which two of their kin had been set free, it was a crude and reprehensible stunt,” said LP campaign manager Florencio Abad.
Abad also debunked reports that Roxas also sought the support of the Ampatuans.
He said the mention of Roxas during the press conference of the Ampatuans inside the jail could be part of a mind-conditioning scheme by other vice presidential candidates lagging in the surveys. - With Rhodina Villanueva, Delon Porcalla, Aurea Calica, Reinir Padua, Jigger Jerusalem

Source: Philstar

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