Influential overseas Filipinos groups endorse selected candidates

Source: The Filipino Australian

The US Pinoys for Good Governance (USP4GG) and the Global Filipino Diaspora Council (GFDC) today announced the names of 11 senatorial candidates and a party list that they are endorsing for the May 13 elections.

Signing the GFDC Charter – (L-R): Atty Ted Laguatan, Atty Rodel Rodis, and Atty Loida Nicolas-Lewis on February 26 during the 2nd Global Summit of Filipinos in the Diaspora in Makati. [File Photo]

The criteria of both organisations in choosing the candidates to be endorsed are competence, integrity and a track record of accomplishing observable good results that benefit people, said Atty. Ted Laguatan, Spokesperson and Legal Counsel for both USP4GG and GFDC.

“Having essentially the same objective criteria, it’s perhaps not surprising that the candidates and Party list endorsed by both organizations came out to be a mirror image of the other – except for the addition of Teddy Casino on the GFDC list,” Laguatan said.

USP4GG, headed by philanthropist Loida Nicolas Lewis, has effectively lobbied the U.S. and the Philippine governments for policies and legislation benefiting Filipinos. GFDC is a global organisation of overseas Filipino community leaders from 27 countries with “the betterment of life for Filipinos overseas and those in the Philippines” as its main goal.

The GFDC was officially constituted last February during the 2nd Global Summit of Filipinos in the Diaspora held in Makati. Some USP4GG members are also active with the GFDC because of the organisations’ common goals.

Early last March, Laguatan and Rodel Rodis, lawyers for the two groups – appeared before the Comelec and successfully argued for the reinstatement of about 239,000 overseas voters who were delisted in December 2012 by Comelec for failing to vote in two consecutive elections.

They argued that the failure to vote was not out of apathy but simply because they were either serving in ships as seamen or they had changed addresses and did not receive the ballots from Comelec.

The candidates and party-list endorsed by USP4GG and GFDC are:

1. Loren Legarda

2. Alan Cayetano

3. Ramon Magsaysay Jr.

4. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel

5. Risa Hontiveros-Barraquel

6. Bam Aquino

7. Edgardo “Sonny” Angara

8. Grace Poe

9. Edward Hagedorn

10. Eddie Villanueva

11.Teddy Casino (endorsed only by GFDC)

Party list: Akbayan

Both groups not only encourage overseas voters to vote for these endorsed candidates and party list but also to urge their relatives in the homeland to vote for the same.