Barbers: Voters did not go for 鈥榳ho defended or attacked a Duterte鈥�
Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers on Saturday, May 17, 2025, shrugged off claims that the poor showing of administration-backed senatorial bets in Mindanao in the just-concluded midterm polls was due to the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte. File photo.
MANILA, Philippines — Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers on Saturday shrugged off claims that the poor showing of administration-backed senatorial bets in Mindanao in the just-concluded midterm polls was due to the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Barbers said that the “blame game” waged by some quarters trying to pin Alyansa’s senatorial bets’ losses on the impeachment complaint is “unfair” and such statements are “misleading and detached from the real sentiment of Mindanaoan voters.”
“Let’s be honest—voters are smarter than we give them credit for. They did not vote based on who defended or attacked a Duterte. They voted for local leaders who delivered, who stood their ground, and who worked with integrity,” Barbers said in a statement.
Barbers also emphasized that if a candidate underperformed, it’s not because he spoke the truth and stood up for accountability.
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“Senate campaigns are won with message, machinery, and momentum—not by shielding sacred cows from scrutiny. If some candidates underperformed, it was because we didn’t connect enough at the national level, not because we fought for truth and transparency,” Barbers added.
The administration-backed slate, which fielded 11 candidates in the Senate race, secured five seats, and the winning candidates were Rep. Erwin Tulfo, former senators Panfilo Lacson and Vicente Sotto, Sen. Pia Cayetano, Las Piñas Rep. Camille Villar, and Sen. Lito Lapid.
Sen. Imee Marcos, who withdrew from Alyansa, and Villar were adopted as guest candidates by PDP-Laban.
The DuterTEN, or the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino slate backed by former President Rodrigo Duterte, won by landslide votes in Mindanao, with reelectionists Senators Bong Go and Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa leading in the region.
Further, Barbers noted that the impeachment complaint against the vice president is not a “political liability” as most Mindanao lawmakers who backed the impeachment were reelected. Barbers, the House quad committee lead chairman, also supported the impeachment.
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“Thirty-six out of 44 Mindanao lawmakers who signed the impeachment complaint were reelected. That’s a clear 81.81% win rate. If the impeachment was such a political liability, we would’ve been wiped out in our own districts. But we were not—we were overwhelmingly returned to office,” Barbers said.
Barbers noted that several lawmakers who supported the impeachment move against Duterte won the elections:
- Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong and Rep. Yasser Balindong of Lanao del Sur
- Rep. Romeo Momo of Surigao del Sur
- Rep. Dimszar Sali of Tawi-Tawi
- Rep. Roberto ‘Pinpin’ Uy Jr. of Zamboanga del Norte
- Rep. Samantha Santos of Cotabato, and Rep. Keith Flores and Jose Manuel Alba of Bukidnon
Barbers said that the victory of the lawmakers proves that Mindanao voters “know the difference between political vendetta and constitutional accountability.”/coa
