BY JEN BAYLON

Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said yesterday that 60 members of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP) in Negros Occidental resigned from the political party.

Benitez said the PDP members held a meeting on Saturday, May 25, and signed an irrevocable resignation from the group.

“We will just resign as a group, and we will make a decision in the near future,” Benitez said.

Of the 60 officials who resigned, eight were mayors, five vice mayors, and 46 councilors from Negros Occidental’s 31 local government units and capital Bacolod.

Benitez, the chairman of PDP-Negros Occidental, said the group’s decision to resign from the party was reportedly motivated by their feelings of being ignored and excluded from the party’s gatherings and meetings.

“It’s not that we did not heed their call but, as PDP members, we were not even invited to their gatherings and meetings. What do you expect?” the mayor said.

Benitez also hinted that more PDP members may follow suit, as they are still deliberating on their next move.

Earlier this month, Benitez said the “misalignment of the direction” was the reason why they have to resign from PDP.

He did not disclose which political party they would join.

In April, Victorias City Vice Mayor Abelardo Bantug, Jr. and nine city councilors resigned from PDP, following the announcement of PDP-Visayas deputy secretary general Atty. Jesus Hinlo that they are eyeing fielding former Victorias Mayor Francis Frederick Palanca against incumbent Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson in the 2025 midterm elections.

Several PDP members in Victorias resigned after receiving information that Palanca was being considered for endorsement, saying “that decision was made without consultation.”/JB, WDJ