Roxas-Santos tandem in 2016 elections?

Governor Vilma Santos-Recto at Danny Dolor’s “Alitaptap” Movie Posters Exhibit in Lipa City, Batangas (Wikipedia photo)

MANILA – Batangas Governor Vilma Santos-Recto admitted that some Liberal Party (LP) members, which she referred to as ‘feelers,’ have asked if she was considering running for vice president in next year’s national elections.

Santos-Recto, who was a member of the ruling LP, has been reportedly seen as a viable running mate for presumptive standard-bearer Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II.

For her part, the governor disclosed that she has no political plans yet for the coming national elections as she first wanted to focus on the fulfillment of her duties in Batangas.

Santos-Recto, however, was thankful that she was considered for the said post but refused to entertain feelers as she has yet to receive a formal invitation from President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III himself.

Roxas-Poe tandem unlikely

Meanwhile, Aquino met with Senator Grace Poe again yesterday. But still, no announcement of a Roxas-Poe team up was made afterwards.

Speculations stated that Poe was not interested in running alongside Roxas as she eyed the country’s highest post and preferred Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero as running mate.

In a Philippine Star report, the neophyte senator confirmed the meeting but did not give further details. It can be recalled the she earlier met with Aquino, Roxas and Escudero in a dinner last week.

“We talked for about five hours. I could sense the very difficult position P-Noy is in right now,” Poe said in the report,  referring to her recent meeting with Aquino.

“There was mutual respect for each other in our conversation. All I can say is that this is perhaps our last meeting before the SONA (State of the Nation Address) and, as I said, we both agreed that we both have the best interest of our country in mind in whatever decisions we will make in the coming days,” she added.

One thing was clear; Poe believed that she and Aquino have the best interest for the Philippines.

“He reiterated his desire for all of us to continue working together and that he believes that, like him, we can and will do what is best for our country,” she said.

Aquino, for his part, earlier disclosed that Roxas was his top choice as successor.

“He is, to my mind, as far as our coalition is concerned, he is at the top of the list,” the President told reporters in an ambush interview, mentioning that Roxas has ‘quite a wide range of expertise’ which made him capable to run the country.