On a whim, Hagedorn runs for senator

(Updated 4:55 p.m.) Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn on on Wednesday filed a certificate of candidacy (COC) for senator, the same day he decided to run for the post.

 

In an interview with reporters after filing his COC at the Comelec office in Manila, Hagedorn said he had no plans of running but that former President Joseph Estrada's lawyer George Erwin Garcia convinced him to do so earlier in the day.

 

"Wala po talaga akong plano e. Tumawag lang sa akin si attorney, kaya lumipad kami dito biglaan," he said.

 

He said Estrada asked him to join the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) to replace whistleblower Joey De Venecia but that he didn't want to choose a side.

 

"Sabi niya, halika sama ka sa amin. Sabi ko, gagandang lalaki ng kasama mo diyan e, magsosolo na lang ako. Para rin wala ng tampuhan. Kaibigan ko lahat e," he said, although saying Estrada may still support his candidacy.

 

Hagedorn is a member of the Nationalist People's Coalition, which had forged a partnership with the Liberal and Nacionalista parties for the 2013 polls. However, he said their lineup was already complete when he made his decision.

 

"Kanina napagkasunduan namin sige independent na lang ako,  subok lang para di malungkot habang walang ginagawa," he said. "Altertanibo lang po ako. Dun sa mga naguguluhan sa madami, baka gusto niyo ng nagi-isa." 

 

He likewise said he decided to agree to the suggestion since his term as mayor will end next year. His wife Elena will run for Puerto Princesa mayor next year.

 

"Wala na kasi akong lugar sa Puerto Princesa...expired na yung term ko. Magpapahinga sana ako kaya lang parang nakakalungkot naman," he said. "Gusto [ko] lang din testing lang.  Baka later on may plano tayo ng mas mataas na posisyon, magpakilala na ngayon."

 

Hagedorn had served as Puerto Princesa mayor from 1992 to 2001. He ran for governor of Palawan in 2001 but lost.

 

But in 2002, then Puerto Princesa Mayor Dennis Socrates was ousted, paving the way for the conduct of special election for the said post. 

 

And despite having served for three consecutive terms before Socrates, Hagedorn was allowed by the Supreme Court to run for the position again, saying the mayor’s less than a year hiatus excludes him from the rule. He won. 

 

He was also reelected to the same position in 2004, 2007, and 2010. — RSJ, GMA News