Isko in 'self-destruct mode', says ex-Aksyon official

MANILA (UPDATE) - Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer Isko Moreno Domagoso has "damaged the values" of the party and has been "dividing" the group instead of leading it, one of the party's former officials said Thursday.

Domagoso joined "the party just for this year's elections" and he is already in "self-destruct mode," said Kaye Legaspi, Aksyon Demokratiko's former Vice President for Youth.

"Mayor Isko is in self-destruct mode. He divides all of us," Legaspi told ANC's Headstart.

"Mayor Isko has truly damaged the values of the party... Wala namang nagbago sa prinsipyong pinanghahawakan namin, ang nagbago yung kandidato," she said.

(Nothing changed in the values we uphold. Only the candidate changed.)

"If he can't lead the party being our standard bearer, what more yung buong Pilipinas (the whole Philippines)?" she said.

Legaspi admitted that several Aksyon Demokratiko candidates and members, including herself, have left the party even before the Easter press conference, where Domagoso suddenly egged Vice President Leni Robredo to withdraw from the presidential race.

• 'Leni, withdraw': Isko calls on Robredo to pull out of 2022 presidential race

"It really doesn't matter whether before or after it was the press con because we believe that Mayor Isko does not uphold the values that the party has," she said.

"We were really disappointed because with all the charades that had been going [on], tumalon at lumundag lahat ng prinsipyo bakit kami sumapi sa Aksyon," she said.

(All the principles that prompted us to join Aksyon were skipped.)

Aksyon Demokratiko - founded by the late Sen. Raul Roco - has been espousing 5 core values: “honest governance, opportunity for all, peace, productivity, and education and environment for sustainable development.”

While Legaspi did not expound why she felt that Domagoso failed to carry these values, she described the Manila Mayor's outbursts this week as "very unbecoming of a public servant and a gentleman."

"The press con is the turning point that compelled us to speak out because it is just too much for a presidential candidate to do that," she said.

"I think being a standard bearer, we are hoping that he would have the integrity, the composure and the expertise to effectively handle the most difficult job in the government, especially during this most challenging time."

Legaspi said that she has not yet formally resigned from Aksyon Demokratiko as she feels that she could still "contribute and uphold the values" of the party, but party chairperson Ernest Ramel Jr. disputed her claim.

• Isko stands by #WithdrawLeni call, urges Robredo camp to 'stop being a bully'

'CLOSE ATTACHEMENT' TO ROBREDO

Legaspi "never was totally for Mayor Isko right from the start because of her close attachment to the Vice President," Ramel told ABS-CBN News Digital.

"She personally asked permission from me last February 27 that she will publicly come out for Leni," he said.

Legaspi did "some political work for VP Leni sometime between 2017-2018," he said.

The youth leader's opinion is not something other Aksyon Demokratiko officials share, the party chairperson said.

"It's her opinion. One that people such as I who had been with the party since 1998 as well those who had been with Aksyon since that time and most way earlier than when she joined do not share," he said.

"At the end of the day, this 2022 campaign showed the real character of the very few from Aksyon who are supporting a different candidate," he said.

Legaspi's claim that about 100 supporters have bolted from Isko's camp to join Robredo's campaign statements is a "blatant lie," Ramel said in a separate text message to reporters.

"This is a blatant lie that unfortunately these young people are peddling or handlers are making everybody believe," he said.

Lito Banayo, Domagoso's chief strategist, shrugged off observations that party members and supporters have been bolting their camp due to the Manila Mayor's recent statements.

"To me it's a win some, lose some thing," Banayo said.

"I don't want to cast aspersions on integrity, but I would honestly and seriously doubt if the intention is really because of what Isko has said."

• 'He was really hurt': Banayo denies Isko 'imploding' after #WithdrawLeni call

Aside from Legaspi and some youth volunteers, several key officials of Ikaw Muna Pilipinas (IM Pilipinas) have also withdrawn their support for Domagoso and have started campaigning for Robredo.

• Some IM Pilipinas officials switch to Robredo; Isko says campaign ‘unaffected’

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