PRESIDENTIAL bet Senator Panfilo Lacson stressed that the elections should be about the future of the country.

Lacson said this means voting for the most qualified leader.

He lamented that although he is the most prepared among the candidates, he has been trailing other bets in surveys.

“How is it that I am perceived to be the most knowledgeable in management of government, way above the rest, and yet that does not factor in the surveys? Nonetheless, I will continue to champion my track record, qualities, platforms, and standard of what the Philippines needs,” he said.

Lacson added that he rejected money politics and stuck to his principles and integrity when he resigned from Partido Reporma as its chairman.

He quit the party after some of its officials decided to endorse another candidate.

On Friday, Lacson disclosed that campaign expenses amounting to P800 million was the reason for Reporma’s switch to another bet.

“Kung corrupt ako, madali ko sanang maibibigay ang P800 milyon na hinihingi nila. But I don’t have the guts to steal or accept bribes. Nothing can ever change my principles and tarnish my integrity. This fight is not just about me and the present. It is about our country’s future,” he said on his Twitter account.

Lacson reiterated his stance against money politics, where candidates give voters what they want during the campaign period — then get back their investment by engaging in corruption during their term.

“As long as ‘money politics’ dominates our elections, it will be a vicious ‘cycle of revenge’ between candidates and voters: voters having a field day during the campaign period and candidates exacting vengeance for three or six years of victory. Kawawang Pilipinas,” he said.