And the Lakas Kampi CMD is pretty much open to coalescing with the Nationalist peoples’s Coalition on the condition that Legarda would team up with Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro in next year’s presidential election.

The ball, party officials said, is now with the NPC.

‘She is still a viable, desirable sidekick to Gibo. That is undeniably open and seriously considered by the party,” party secretary general Gabriel Claudio said by telephone Fri. night. He was referring to Legarda.

Legarda announced she was running VP at a meeting following a rally Fri. night, hours after Puno announced his withdrawal from the vice presidential race to focus on his job.

The senator , however , did not say whether she would run under her party, the Nationalist people’s's Coalition, or who she would be running with as presidential vice candidate.

The administration party has been holding talks with Legarda for her to run under its banner in time for its convention, provisionally set for November. 12, where the standard-bearer Teodoro, his running mate and senatorial candidates will be officially proclaimed.

The party has been buoyed up by reports the NPC founder, businessman Eduardo’Danding” Cojuangco Jr, has changed his mind about bankrolling the presidential candidacy of Sen. Francis’Chiz” Escudero.

Escudero, part of the touted Chiz-Loren tandem, has put off announcement of his plans more than a week ago.

If the reports prove to be true, that would unlock Legarda and clear the way for a coalition between Lakas Kampi and NPC for next year’s vote, said Claudio, also the political adviser of President Macapagal-Arroyo.

‘It was formerly presumed that NPC would have its own candidate for President. There’s plenty of conjecture, indication that Senator Escudero just won’t be endorsed by the party itself. So that gives rise to the prospects about a Lakas-NPC coalition,” he announced.

Claudio declared the ruling party has no objections to a coalition with NPC, which if formalized could be a fixed basis for’a Gibo-Loren tandem.” Party officials had billed the tandem as a’potent combination.”

‘This is something we can’t decide unilaterally,” Claudio quickly added, indicating it was now up to the NPC to agree to a coalition with the ruling party.

He texted the Inquirer on Sat. [*CO]‘The ball is on NPC’s court.”

Claudio stressed that it was not the party, but the League of Provinces of the Philippines that endorsed a tandem of Teodoro and Legarda as a condition for the coalition between the Lakas Kampi and NPC.

there’s a’rainbow coalition” of Lakas, Kampi, NPC, and other parties in the House of representatives, but none has been forged on the national level.

As for Batangas Gov. Vilma Santos, the party has so far not gotten any clear answers from her as to whether she was prepared to run for vice president under the administration banner.

‘No truth to that. Someone told me-I think it was Gabby ( Claudio ) -that there’s nothing definite about Vilma. Somebody just floated the assumption that she could run as VP,” Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita announced over the government-run dzRB radio.

Claudio declared the party has still to get’a formal stipulation of availability or non-availability” from Santos.

If the party fails to get Legarda, or perhaps Santos, to run for VP, it could always fall back on its allies who are rather available.

They include Sen. Ramon’Bong” Revilla Jr. And Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, both Lakas Kampi members, and Tourism Secretary Ace Durano, an NPC member, according to Claudio.

‘If they ( NPC ) won’t permit Senator Legarda to be the vice candidate of Gibo, Lakas Kampi will proceed to field someone from its own ranks, where other excellent materials for VP can be drawn,” he recounted.