Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino

The Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino (lit. 'Struggle of the Patriotic Filipino Masses') was the umbrella political coalition party of the opposition during the 1998 Philippine presidential election that led to the presidency of then Vice President Joseph Estrada. It was the largest political party of that time, uniting the major parties of Senator Edgardo Angara (LDP-Aurora)'s Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (Struggle of Democratic Filipinos), tycoon Eduardo Cojuangco Jr.'s Nationalist People's Coalition, Vice President Joseph Estrada's Partido ng Masang Pilipino (Party of the Filipino Masses)^[1] and along with minor and regional parties. Estrada's running mate, Senator Edgardo Angara lost to Senator Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (LAKAS-Pampanga). Joseph Estrada won against runner-up then House Speaker Jose de Venecia (LAKAS-Pangasinan) with 3.1 million plurality.

After the 1998 elections, the party's name was changed into Lapian ng Masang Pilipino (LAMP; English: Organization of the Filipino Masses), as the "struggle" ended with Estrada's victory.

Slogan

The coalition devised an acronym for the Senate slate which is: TPW (The Pilipino Win/The Philippine Way), JOBS and LABOR. T stands for Torres; P for Pimentel; W for Webb; J for Jaworski; O for Ople; B for Bagatsing; S for Sotto; L for Lagman; A for Aquino-Oreta; B for Biazon; O for Osmeña; R for Romero.

The Senatorial Slate

The following are the official senatorial slate of the Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino in the 1998 National Elections.

Election results

The success of the coalition was partly because of the popularity of its main man, Vice President Joseph Estrada who won the elections. His senatorial slate also gained majority of 7 out of 12 available seats in the Senate. They were:

• Teresa Aquino-Oreta
• Rodolfo Biazon
• Robert Jaworski
• Blas Ople
• John Henry Osmeña
• Nene Pimentel
• Vicente Sotto III

Also, the coalition gained great majority in the House of Representatives and majority of elected local officials are members of the coalition.

During the 2001 Midterm Legislative Elections, LAMMP was abolished and was replaced by a new coalition of Pro-Estrada legislators led by the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP) of Edgardo Angara, named Puwersa ng Masa (Force of the Masses) led by Estrada's wife, Luisa Ejercito Estrada.

See also

• Lakas NUCD 1998 Senatorial Slate, the Ramos' administration's senatorial slate and rival of the LAMMP during the 1998 national elections

References