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By Maricel V. Cruz, Reporter
The merger between the Lakas- Christian Muslim
Democrats (Lakas-CMD) and the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi)
became more remote on Thursday after the camp of former House
Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. called for the removal of President
Gloria Arroyo as chairman of Lakas.
“President Arroyo should be the one to quit
the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats for violating the party’s
Christian principles and ideology,” de Venecia’s counsel, Raul
Lambino, said.
Lambino made the statement a few days after de
Venecia asked former President Fidel Ramos, the party’s
chairman emeritus, to reject merger between Lakas and Kampi, and
purge their party of “evil forces.”
De Venecia told Ramos that a Lakas-Kampi merger
would also cause the demise of Lakas, the only political party in
Asia or perhaps in the world, that has brought Christian and Muslim
democrats under one party.
“Lakas-CMD needs de Venecia as the co-founder
of the party, and as the most visible advocate of centrist democracy
and Christian-Muslim coalition and cooperation,” Lambino said.
De Venecia, a co-founder of Lakas with Ramos,
was elected chairman of Centrist Democrats International-Asia
Pacific, succeeding former Thai premier Thak-sin Shinawatra, and has
won re-election as vice-president for the third time of the
influential Centrist Democrats International (CDI), the mother
organization of Lakas-CMD.
CDI is currently headed by former Mexico
President Vicente Fox and by the Interparliamentary Union
President Pier Ferdinando Casini. It has more than 110 political
parties worldwide under the banner of centrist democracy.
JdV will not resign from Lakas
Lambino reiterated that de Venecia will not
voluntarily step down as Lakas president despite heavy pressures
from Malacañang for him to relinquish his post.
Nevertheless, Lambino said de Venecia is
prepared for the worst. “He’s going to either form a new
political or join a small one. Let’s see first what will
happen,” Lambino said.
Lakas is scheduled to hold its national
directorate meet-ing on March 3.
However, Lambino warned that Lakas would
be committing a violation of its constitutional by-laws if the party
will push through with its meeting next week without inviting its
president.
“We are prepared for any legal battle if
and when they push through with that meeting,” Lambino said,
noting that they might raise the issue before the Commission on
Elections.
He suggested that Lakas should either
reset the meeting or wait for de Venecia, who is scheduled to return
home on March 6.
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