Alunan served as Tourism Secretary under former President Corazon Aquino from 1987-1989 and as DILG Secretary from 1992 -1996 under former president Fidel Ramos.
Before filing his Certificate of Candidacy, Alunan was actively campaigning for the peaceful resolution Philippine-China territorial conflict as the lead convenor of the West Philippine Sea Coalition which is composed of cause-oriented groups including VACC, Anti-Drugs Advocates, RAM and Guardians, among others.
Alunan and his group have just staged the 3rd Annual Day of Protest against China’s bullying in the West Philippine Sea last July.
The protest, which started in 2013, is aimed at mobilizing Filipinos in general and cause-oriented groups in particular to resist and counter China’s continued territorial expansion in the West Philippine Sea.
Before filing his Certificate of Candidacy, Alunan asked his friends for prayers as he “ventured into the unknown.”
His message: “Dear friends, please pray for me. My head led me to issue a no-go statement last night. today my heart tells me to venture into the unknown and place myself at the service of inang laya and juan de la cruz, and at the mercy of the good lord, against all odds and practices of conventional politics.”
” I will file for the senate today. All i want to do is serve Inang Laya and Juan de la Cruz with the same fervor, honor and integrity as I showed in the past as an appointed public servant,” said Rafael Alunan III, who is running under Bagumbayan Party of former Senator Richard Gordon.
“This morning, when I woke up, medyo mabigat ang aking puso (my heart was kind of heavy) and I decided that my heart will speak for me instead of my mind. I decided to run for the Senate and return to public life,” he said.
“My job is to fix things, my job is to defend the country, my job is to protect the people and win the future,” Alunan added.
