MANILA, Philippines — Celebrity mother Vilma Santos and sons Luis Manzano and Ryan Recto answered a question about them being a political dynasty.
Vilma is running as Batangas governor, Luis is her vice governor, while Ryan is seeking a seat in Congress.
During the press conference of Barako Fest 2025 in Lipa City recently, Vilma said that the people of Batangas will judge them.
“With all honesty, we don’t want to entertain that. We are here to serve, and people will judge us,” Vilma said.
Luis said that Vilma has done a lot for Batangas.
“From mayor of Lipa nakita naman natin kung paano siya naging gobernador ng Batangas. Naging part din siya ng Congress. In fact, naging Lingkod Bayan awardee rin siya. One of the highest awards na pwedeng makuha ng public servant,” Luis said.
“We submitted ourselves to the electoral process. Basta ang hangad namin ay ‘yung paglilingkod namin sa bawa’t Batangueno. Kung saan papunta ang mga pangarap namin sa paglilingkod, kung saan gusto namin ilagay ang puso namin, nakasalalay sa botante ‘yun,” he added.
Ryan then echoed Luis’ sentiments, saying: “I think my brother said it perfectly naman. We are here to serve the people, and the choice will always be theirs.”
Meanwhile, Kapamilya actor Luis Manzano revealed that he lost four endorsements after he decided to run as Batangas vice governor.
In an interview with the media during the Barako Fest 2025 in Lipa recently, Luis said that he understands those brands because there are contracts that limit him for joining politics.
“To be honest, lahat naman tayo matatanda na sa industriyang ito, sa katunayan marami sa mga endorsements ko ang hindi na nag-renew. Agad-agad nu’ng naisipan namin na mag-file (Certificate of Candidacy), isa ‘yun sa sinabi ni Gov. Vi, one time ‘yun, kumakain kami that time,” Luis said.
“Sabi ni Gov. Vi, ‘Anak, alam na alam ko ang industriyang ito (kapag pumasok ka sa politika), sa maniwala ka o sa hindi, kahit ang endorsements mo mawawala.’ Sa katunayan, tatlo o apat na endorsements ko ang nag-pull out na,” he added.
Luis admitted that there’s an advantage and a disadvantage in joining politics.
“Sabi ko, naiintindihan ko naman ‘yun, pero ‘yung income ko, tatamaan talaga. Sabi nga ni Gov. Vi, which is ramdam ko sa start pa lang, sabi niya, ‘Anak, mabawasan ka man ng commercial, ng endorsements, e, masarap naman ang tulog mo dahil marami ka namang natutulungan na tao’.” (J. M. Severo, Philstar)
