ANGELES CITY- The Movement Against Dynasties (MAD) has already gathered some 510,000 signatures from various parts of the country and hopes to attain, before the term of Pres. Aquino ends its target of 5.2 million signatures required under the law so as to finally end political dynasties in the country.
Lito Ong, chairman of MAD in Pampanga, told Punto! that chapters already formed in various parts of the country are set to hold signature drives in major provinces and cities where dynasties are dominant.
Last Sunday, members of MAD in Pampanga joined their counterparts in Ilocos Sur, with the support of the Catholic clergy in the province, in soliciting more anti-dynasty signatures.
“It is notable that there are 28 members of the Singson family running for various posts in Ilocos Sur in the coming May elections, as there are also 28 members of the Ampatuan family running for posts in Maguindanao,” Ong noted in an interview here.
MAD was launched only last February by civil society groups in the hope that the country would finally have a working anti-dynasty law through Republic Act 6735 or the People’s Initiative and Referendum Act.
Ong said that so far, MAD has gathered about 510,000 signatures, amid the 5.2 million the minimum requirement of the law, based on the current voting population of the country.
“The target signatures should come from 250 legislative districts and I believe this can be done in the next two to three years with the help of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP),” Ong said, noting that many bishops in the regions “are very aggressive” in supporting MAD’s provincial sorties.
Earlier, the CBCP came out with a pastoral statement denouncing the rule of the few powerful political clans in the country, as it vowed to back legislation against political dynasties which it said “breeds corruption and inhibits general access to political power, which is a fundamental mark of democracy.”
Ong said that in Pampanga, dynasties are also being perpetrated by the family of Gov. Lilia Pineda whose son Dennis is now her vice gubernatorial running mate. Her daughter and a daughter-in-law are seeking re-elections as mayors of Lubao and Sta. Rita, respectively.
MAD has also regarded the family of Pres. Aquino as belonging to a political dynasty. It also cited the families of Vice President Jejomar Binay, deposed president Joseph Estrada, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, siblings Senators Pia and Allan Cayetano.
At the local level, MAD cited the families of Davao City Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and the Ortegas of La Union.
