Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro (left) and Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto (Contributed photos)
MANILA – Re-electionist Mayor Marcelino “Marcy” Teodoro won the mayoral race in Marikina City while Mayor Vico Sotto is set to serve his second term in Pasig City as the Commission on Elections officially proclaimed them winners on Tuesday morning.
Teodoro garnered 183,878 votes, beating Representative Bayani Fernando who got 40,149 votes, while running mate Marion Andres and their councilors under the banner of "Team Marcy" likewise prevailed.
"Nagpapasalamat talaga ako dahil nakita natin yung pagtitiwala nung mga tao (I'm really grateful because we saw the trust of the people). It's overwhelming on my part and I am honored by this number of votes. The real challenge at our level is the post-Covid (coronavirus disease) recovery plan -- how sustainable and how effective in this context that we are continuously trying to improve our condition,” Teodoro said in a television interview.
“We need to have a very sustainable health care system that is resilient, and more importantly, the economic recovery plan -- generating jobs on our part, (and) how to keep our communities safe from Covid,” added Teodoro, who will be on his third and last term.
Teodoro's wife, Marjorie, won the congressional race in the First District with 68,572 votes.
In Pasig City, Sotto was proclaimed winner with 335,851, convincingly beating incumbent Vice Mayor Iyo Bernardo (45,604).
In his message, Sotto said he wishes Bernardo “peace of mind” now that the elections are over.
He also called for unity for all Pasig residents.
"Malinaw ang tinig ng Pasigueño. Malinaw ang tinig ng buong Pasig. Tuloy ang pagbabago sa lungsod. Paiigtingin pa natin ang mga nasimulan na (The voice of our Pasig residents is clear. The voice of the entire people of Pasig is clear. Change will continue in the city. We will continue what we started)," Sotto said in an interview.
His running mate, Dodot Jaworski, a former professional basketball player and son of Robert Jaworski Sr., won against Junjun Concepcion and Christian Sia.
Reelectionist Representative Roman Romulo, also a Sotto ally, beat Ricky Eusebio and Rex Maliuanag.
Other winners
The Pasig City council slate was likewise dominated by Sotto’s camp.
Winning council seats in District 1 were Kiko Rustia (80,136); Simon Romulo Tantoco (74,384); Pao Santiago (61,789); Volta Delos Santos (51,745); Eric Gonzales (50,316) and Reggie Balderrama (49,297).
Atress Angelu de Leon led the winning councilors in District 2 with 138,427 votes, followed by Corie Raymundo (120,977), Syvel Asilo (99,159), Buboy Agustin (97,218), Quin Kin Cruz (94,473), and Maro Martires (75,566).
Protest
Bernardo led some losing candidates in a midnight protest outside the city hall, raising suspicions over Sotto’s landslide victory.
“Hindi talaga ako makapaniwala na may makukuha kang zero sa isang presinto. Parang napaka-imposible talagang gawin eh (I can’t believe that you can get zero in one precinct. It’s really impossible to do),” Bernardo said in a television interview.
He also cited that his assistance for his constituents at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic should have translated to votes.
Some netizens affirmed their support for Sotto and called out the losing candidates to respect the rule of the majority.
After his proclamation, Sotto joined the city government for a flag ceremony and went to check the city’s ongoing projects under his “Oplan Kaayusan” flagship program. (PNA)
