Teary-eyed Goma bids goodbye to GMA 7

By Fidel Jimenez, GMANews.TV Actor-sportsman Richard Gomez made an emotional farewell to his co-hosts in the weekly program S-Files over GMA Network Sunday. Teary-eyed Gomez announced on the show that he is set to file his certificate of candidacy for senator with the Commission on Election (Comelec) on Monday. Gomez said he will run as independent candidate to give the public an alternative choice. “Mahirap po ang gagawin kong kampanya (This campaign will be an uphill battle for me). I will be running as independent. Ang magiging partido ko ay kayo. Sa inyo po ako aasa dahil kayo ang naniniwala sa akin (my party would be the people. I will draw strength from you because you believe in me)," he said. Gomez was sworn-in last week as member of Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC). Although NPC is an administration ally, some members of the ruling coalition, particularly from Lakas-CMD, have rejected the idea of fielding actors in the “Team Unity" senatorial slate. However, Speaker Jose de Venecia, chairman of Lakas-CMD, has announced that there is one remaining slot in the Team Unity slate for a showbiz personality. But this contradicted the official announcement Sunday of the Team Unity coalition that the last slot will be reserved for a candidate coming from Mindanao. Aside from Gomez, other movie personalities that were reported being considered in the administration slate are Edu Manzano and Cesar Montano. In his farewell speech, Gomez lambasted his critics. “Maraming nagsasabi na wala raw akong alam sa politika. Totoo wala akong alam sa politika dahil hindi ako tuso…dahil wala akong bahid ng politika (My detractors are spreading talk I know nothing about politics. That is true because I am not scheming for power and I am not dirty),"said Gomez. “Please don’t malign me just because I don’t have any experience in legislation." Gomez said his mission is to serve the public. “Habang bata ako gusto ko kayong ipaglaban… ang mga pangarap ko para sa inyo….Marangal na hangarin ko para sa inyo ay sa ating bayan (While I’m still young I would like to fight against inequality… your dreams will be my dreams. I have good intentions for the country)," he added. Gomez said he gained a fortune through discipline, patience and hard work. “Katatapos ko lang mag-high school noon nagluluto lang ako ng hamburger (After finishing high school, I earned a living by cooking hamburgers. [But] because of hard work nasa harap nyo ako at handang magsilbi sa inyo (I’m here to serve you)," he said.- GMANews.TV