Three months before the filing of Certificates of Candidacy for the 2022 National and Local Elections, Pasig City Mayor Victor Ma. Regis Nubla “Vico” Sotto has expressed his desire to seek reelection.
Although he haven’t formally announced it yet, Sotto confirmed in a television interview, that he will run again next year to sustain the “gains” of the city.
“Sa totoo lang, limited ang nagawa namin [Truth is, our accomplishment remains on limited scale],”Sotto said in Filipino, adding that the pandemic affected some of the projects like pushing for universal health care in the city.
Sotto, a Political Science graduate from Ateneo de Manila University, recalled that when he started as a mayor, he was focused on “cleaning” the city, referring to the political system in the city.
“Grabe ’yung pinagdaraanan namin dito. ’Yung nililinis namin dito. Hindi rin naman siya biro, talagang napakahirap [We went through a lot. We did a clean up in the city. It was not a joke, it was so difficult],” he recalled.
In February, Sotto was recognized by the US State Department as one of its international anti-corruption champions, citing his prioritization of transparency and anti-corruption initiatives.
The young mayor was described by the US State Department as a “standard-bearer for a new generation of Philippine politicians.”
Before his stint as a mayor, he was recognized as best-performing councilor in 2016.
In 2019, Sotto defeated then incumbent mayor Robert Eusebio. The Eusebios ruled the city for 27 years.
Sotto banked on health care for Pasig residents, especially those from the eastern part of the city, which he described as the people who were left behind; localized freedom of information, and anti-corruption.
He also mentioned before that the city cradles a P10.7-billion budget where the least number of residents get to benefit from.
Image courtesy of Bernard Testa