By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan
Iloilo City’s congressional hopeful, Raisa Maria Lourdes Treñas-Chu, will join the National Unity Party (NUP) instead of the ruling Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), aligning with her father, Mayor Jerry Treñas.
Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr., the PFP’s regional chairperson, confirmed this in an interview with Aksyon Radyo Iloilo on Friday, May 31.
Defensor, an NUP member from 2021 to 2023, said Treñas-Chu had informed him of her decision to join the NUP.
“Raisa herself told me that she will no longer enter the [PFP] for the meantime, because she will be joining Mayor Jerry’s party [NUP]. We’re not going to stop that,” the governor said.
Mayor Treñas also confirmed via Viber that his daughter, currently an executive assistant, would be joining him in the NUP.
Vice Mayor Jeffrey Ganzon; Mayor Treñas’ son, Councilor Jose Maria Miguel Treñas; other councilors, and barangay officials will also join the PFP.
While the majority will be joining the PFP, the mayor did not specify which members of his team would be taking the oath with the presidential party.
The mayor currently serves as the NUP’s Vice President for Special Concerns, a position previously held by former Manila mayor Francisco Domagoso.
Mayor Treñas mentioned that PFP representatives had met with him to confirm his daughter’s intentions regarding her party affiliations.
Defensor affirmed this, stating that these PFP representatives were long-time local members of the party.
The PFP recently signed alliance agreements with other political parties, including the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD).
Iloilo City lone district representative Julienne Baronda recently transferred to Lakas-CMD after five years with the NUP. This sparked rumors that she would contest her seat against the younger Treñas, whose candidacy was announced by her father on March 15.
The Baronda political family was removed from the mayor’s inner circle, including the sacking of the representative’s sister, Lady Julie Grace, as an executive assistant, and the stripping of committee leaderships from their father, Councilor Urminico Jr.
OATH-TAKING CEREMONY
Governor Defensor confirmed that the PFP will swear in new members in Iloilo City on Sunday, June 2, at 1:00 p.m. at the Grand Xing Imperial Hotel.
Around 600 officials from the city, province of Iloilo, and neighboring provinces of Aklan, Guimaras, and Negros Occidental will take the oath, with more names to be added before the event.
Mayor Treñas will attend as a guest, though he will not be taking the oath with the PFP.
Guimaras Vice Governor John Edward Gando, who took the oath with other provincial executives on May 1, told Daily Guardian that more officials and candidates would join the PFP.
Party officials, including its president, South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo Jr., and Special Assistant to the President Antonio Lagdameo, are expected to attend.
Defensor expressed that aligning with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s party would prioritize developmental project requests by the national government.
“Why are we aligning with the administration and the party of the president? Because we want to be a more effective part of the administration. When we entered, we submitted our developmental project requests. The mayors will also do that on [June 2],” he said.
The oath-taking was originally scheduled for April 10 but was postponed. Defensor told Daily Guardian on May 2 that the schedule depended on the availability of Lagdameo and Tamayo.
