ILOILO – Former congressman Niel “Junjun” Tupas Jr. and his brother’s wife, Provincial Board member Binky April Montesclaros-Tupas, gear up for a congressional face-off in the 5th District in the May 12, 2025 midterm elections.
Former congressman Tupas, running under the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) alongside his “team” – brother and former Barotac Viejo mayor Niel “Beng” Tupas III who is running for Provincial Board member under the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), and cousin Atty. Rolex Suplico, running under Uswag Ilonggo.
On the other side, Montesclaros-Tupas filed her COC under Lakas-CMD on Saturday, October 6. Joining her ticket are brother-in-law and former Provincial Board member Dr. Darl Tupas, and incumbent Sangguniang Bayan (SB) member Carlo Ong of Carles.
Montesclaros-Tupas is the wife of “graduating” Cong. Raul “Boboy” Tupas, the younger brother of Niel Jr.
In both the 2019 and 2022 polls, Niel Jr. lost to younger brother Raul.
The family feud started in 2015 when Raul decided to run against then “graduating” Cong. Niel Jr.’s wife, Yvonne Angeli, for the congressional seat in 2016.
For the 2025 polls, the former congressman declared: “There is only one (original) Tupas running for congressman, and that is Niel Tupas Jr.”
Should he win, Niel Tupas Jr. said, he plans to prioritize investigations into the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in the 5th District, citing allegations of corruption involving a single contractor monopolizing district projects.
He also aims to address the alleged political interference in the hiring of personnel at the Northern Iloilo State University (NISU).
“Education should not be influenced by politics,” he said.
But in a surprising move, Niel Tupas Jr. expressed his intent to vote for his brother Raul who is running for vice governor of Iloilo.
“This is not about politics anymore. Even if we are not from the same coalition, my vote will go to my brother,” he said.
However, he stopped short of committing to actively campaign for Raul, citing the independence of his supporters./PN
