Pacquiao files bid for presidency as Philippine race heats

MANILA – Newly retired boxing prima Manny Pacquiao filed his certificate of candidacy for the Philippine presidency Friday astatine the commencement of a weeklong registration play for candidates seeking to pb a Southeast Asian federation that has been deed hard by the pandemic and heavy governmental conflicts.

Elections officials placed dense restrictions to forestall the Oct. 1-8 registration play from drafting immense crowds of governmental supporters and becoming hotbeds for coronavirus infections. Aside from the presidency and vice presidency, much than 18,000 national, section and legislature posts volition beryllium contested successful the elections May 9, 2022.

Considered an Asian bastion of democracy, the Philippines has besides seen electoral mayhem and violence. In 2009, gunmen deployed by the household of Maguindanao province's then-governor massacred 58 people, including journalists, successful an onslaught connected an predetermination convoy that shocked the world.

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About 3,000 constabulary officers, including immoderate patrolling successful armored constabulary vans, were deployed astir a seaside normal analyzable successful Manila wherever statesmanlike candidates were expected to register.

Aspirants tin bring lone up to 3 companions erstwhile registering their candidacies to forestall past chaotic scenes of candidates showing up with movie stars, philharmonic bands and rowdy mobs of followers.

“We truly went to large grade to marque definite that the filing would beryllium sober,” Commission connected Elections spokesperson James Jimenez said.

Still, hundreds of fans and supporters successful look masks and holding Pacquiao’s representation and tiny Philippine flags lined the thoroughfare starring to the heavy secured elections registration halfway by Manila Bay to cheer his convoy.

Many expect the contention to win arguable President Rodrigo Duterte to beryllium crowded and politically hostile. Pacquiao, erstwhile nationalist constabulary main Panfilo Lacson and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno person declared they volition question the presidency and others are expected.

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Duterte, 76, has accepted the ruling party’s information for him to tally arsenic vice president successful a determination that whipped up a law statement and shocked opponents who person agelong condemned him arsenic a quality rights calamity.

Philippine presidents are constitutionally constricted to a single, six-year term, and a law adept has said helium would question Duterte’s candidacy earlier the Supreme Court since a palmy vice-presidential tally would enactment him wrong 1 measurement of the bureau again.

Western governments led by the United States and quality rights activists person agelong raised the alarm implicit Duterte’s police-enforced crackdown against amerciable drugs that has near much than 6,000 mostly petty cause suspects dormant since helium took bureau successful mid-2016. The killings are being investigated by the International Criminal Court.

Although Duterte remains fashionable based connected sentiment polls, the cause killings, on with his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which led to 1 of the worst economical recessions and wide unemployment and hunger, are expected to beryllium cardinal issues successful the elections.

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Activists person agelong compared Duterte to the precocious dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was ousted successful a 1986 army-backed “people power” revolt that became a harbinger of alteration successful authoritarian regimes worldwide. A lad and namesake of Marcos, erstwhile legislator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., is expected to contention the presidency and has received bully enactment successful autarkic sentiment polls.

“The stakes are precocious for Philippine democracy,” Manila-based expert Julio Teehankee said, adding the campaigner who tin supply a wide and workable roadmap to navigate the state retired of the pandemic and economical shocks would person a important edge.

The Philippines has reported much than 2.5 cardinal COVID-19 cases, with 38,164 deaths successful the second-worst pandemic tolls successful Southeast Asia aft Indonesia.

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