|
Team Unity deputy spokesman Tonypet Albano has
withdrawn from the race for governor in Isabela to focus on the
campaign of the administration’s senatorial candidates.
Albano, son of Energy Regulatory
Commission head Rodolfo Albano, said in a statement on Wednesday he
has informed President Arroyo and the Team Unity Arbitration
Committee of his withdrawal.
Albano holds a bachelor’s
degree in political science from the University of California at Los
Angeles. He is also the head executive assistant at the Energy
Regulatory Board.
“I once promised that the only
thing that would make me withdraw from this election as your
candidate for governor, is when I, Tonypet, would be a hindrance to
the progress of Isabela and the entire Philippines,” he said.
“As I have been asked to help in a national scope, then who am I
not to give in to the demand of our national leaders like the
President and our able Team Unity senatorial candidates. In fact, it
is my honor to defend, campaign, and bring to victory our Team Unity
for a better Philippines.”
He expressed his wish to lead the
way in showing “that we can sacrifice our personal ambitions for
the sake of our province, our country, and our people.”
With Albano dropping out, the
showdown is between former governor Faustino Dy and the incumbent
Grace Padaca, both members of the administration coalition.
Padaca is the candidate of the
Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats. Dy is running under the
Nationalist People’s Coalition, which also belongs of the Team
Unity coalition.
--Maricel V. Cruz
|
