Congresswoman Lucy Torres mulls Senate run, Mayor Richard Gomez eyes House seat
CONGRESSWOMAN LUCY TORRES with husband Ormoc Mayor Richard Gomez and their daughter Juliana: are they swapping posts in 2022?
It seems Congresswoman Lucy Torres Gomez has not made a final decision on plans for her to run for senator.
It can be recalled that her actor husband, now Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez, had tried once to run for senator but luck was not on his side.
This time, the couple maybe is trying to study the matter thoroughly even as Congresswoman Torres is expected to end her term as Leyte lawmaker in 2022.
What attracts the couple to the possibility that the lady lawmaker may run for senator is that she is being wooed by several parties to join their senatorial slate even without them asking for it.
One of those which first announced Congresswoman Lucy she was being considered in their senatorial ticket was the team of Sen. Panfilo Lacson and Senate President Vicente Sotto III.
The administration party, PDP Laban, and another party were also reported to be considering her in their ticket if published reports in Manila media and online media were to be the basis.
Congresswoman Lucy disclosed she will decide with her husband before the filing of certificate of candidacy on October 1.
“I still don’t know. I’m still weighing my options,” the former actress and now lady lawmaker for Ormoc and fourth district of Leyte said.
She has a new revelation though: Mayor Richard Gomez will run for her congressional post.
“Richard will be the one to run for a seat in congress as it’s my last term,” she added.
“Well, I’m glad somebody wants to include me in their slate. I’m thankful as it’s a blessing, an added value,” she said.
” We should listen to anybody offering their services to the people as to what they exactly have in mind in terms of the services they’d give,” she said. “And Sens. Ping and Tito always relate to the people what their plans are on how they aim to serve. But wala pa akong formal talks with them and I haven’t really decided yet.”
With Mayor Richard Gomez running for Congress, the lady lawmaker may run for mayor of her home city of Ormoc, which means they could be swapping posts.
The congresswoman, meanwhile, recalled how very difficult for her when her husband Richard Gomez was infected by the coronavirus, according to published reports.
“The whole family is affected. The tendency is to panic but each Covid case is a very individual journey, so you have to just listen to your own doctor and stop reading about other cases as they are not your case,” she said.
” I’m just thankful it happened at the time of the Olympics kasi otherwise, Richard will not stay put, lalabas pa rin ‘yan. But the games distracted him so he rested and just watched. Otherwise I’d handcuff him to myself, para akong nanay niya. I reminded him to conserve his energy for faster healing,” she added.
She said she is glad that in Ormoc, the cases are not as so rampant as in Metro Manila. “Our cases are relatively low. Last report I got is we got only 18 cases. We don’t have the bigger health care capacity of bigger cities, so from the start our thrust is prevention more than treatment. We’re very strict with our border controls to keep Ormoc safe. People from other municipalities cannot just enter our city. In terms of land area, Ormoc is actually as big as Manila, but with lesser people, only 200,000, and there are more open areas and we have easy access to the mountains and the sea.”
Will their daughter Juliana follow her and Richard in politics? “I cannot speak for her,” was her ready answer, according to Manila reports.
“Richard and I never impose our own wishes on our daughter. Whatever she wants to do, it’s entirely up to her and we’re just here to support her. Right now, she’s still training for fencing so it’s up to her if she wants to go into politics,” she said. (Jeanne Michael Penaranda)
