Kiko Pangilinan, Bam Aquino upbeat on Iloilo support to Senate comeback bid
Former Vice President Leni Robredo raises the hands of senatorial candidates Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino during the Kiko-Bam 2025 People’s Campaign Kick-Off Rally last February 11 at Dasmarinas City Arena in Cavite. (Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net)
ILOILO CITY—Former senators Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino were optimistic that the support from the city and province of Iloilo, which backed them in previous elections, would be key to their comeback in the Senate in the May 2025 elections.
Pangilinan and Aquino visited Iloilo on Thursday, March 6, and were welcomed by more than 5,000 supporters at the Iloilo Sports Complex Provincial Gym.
They were accompanied by former Vice President Leni Robredo who won big in Iloilo City, garnering 149,256 votes over now President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who received only 85,117 votes.
Pangilinan, who ran as Roredo’s running mate in the 2022 elections, also scored big in the city with 107,465 votes over Vice President Sara Duterte’s 92,946.
Aquino, for his part, got the second highest number of votes in the city with 115,013 votes despite losing in the 2019 senatorial race.
Pangilinan finished first and second in Iloilo City during 2007 and 2016 senatorial races.
Iloilo trust
“In all these instances when I was elected in Iloilo, the trust you have given me, the support you have given me, I made sure that I didn’t take it for granted, and in three terms, never would I get involved in any case of corruption because of the trust that our voters gave us. That is important,” Pangilinan said.
“It is clear to our fellow [Filipinos], there are people running with track records of corruption, at least [Aquino] and I don’t,” he added.
He said that the eventual break-up of the Marcos-Duterte tandem last year would give them a chance in winning in the upcoming elections.
“One major difference between 2016 and 2022 is, [Marcos] and [Duterte] united in 2022, so there were solid [wins] in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. But today, ‘unity’ had a problem, so that gives us an opening of one-third [Marcos], one-third [Duterte], and one-third [others],” Pangilinan said.
“I also think that before, there were insults directed at us on social media. I was made a devil, trolled, bashed, etc., for six years. But now, it’s not that intense, so that’s good for us moving forward. Most importantly, [Filipinos] are more vigilant of what they see on social media,” he added.
Sustaining Iloilo progress
Aquino vowed to continue the developments in Iloilo started by the Ilonggo-born former senator Franklin Drilon.
“[Drilon] is a person who looks at the rule of law, looks at the needs of the people, and looks at the needs of Iloilo City, Iloilo province, and the whole of Panay Island,” Aquino said.
He also said that he could replicate his finish in 2019, given that he was aligned with the political opposition at the time.
“It was a time when all of the bullets [and] all attacks were aimed at me, Iloilo stood up for me. I was number two then, and that’s short of a miracle when you think about it. So if that can happen when I was a number-one [target] of attacks, what now that [Pangilinan] and I are [running] independently?” he said.
Drilon’s endorsement
Drilon, who was present during the press conference, called on the public to support Pangilinan and Aquino.
“I was in the Senate for 24 years. If there are people qualified to be in the Senate, it is [Pangilinan] and [Aquino]. I have worked with the two of them,” the former senate president said.
Pangilinan is running on a platform of food security, a key issue under the Marcos Jr. administration, while Aquino promises to strengthen the country’s education system and to make young people job-ready.
