MANILA, Philippines – Partylist group Bayan Muna (People First) filed its manifestation of intent to participate in the 2010 elections before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Secretariat and named its three nominees for Congress on Tuesday.

Bayan Muna Representative Teddy Casino said the new nominees would include him as first nominee, followed by Representative Neri Colmenares and human rights lawyer Joven Laura.

Casino and Colmenares moved up from the list of nominees from second and third to the first two spots after Representative Satur Ocampo filed his senatorial bid on Sunday together with Gabriela Representative Liza Maza.

Bayan Muna has authored and filed over 100 House bills and 300 resolutions from the 12th and 14th Congress. Among these are bills that repeal death penalty, criminalize violence against women and children, prohibit human trafficking, grant tax relief to minimum wage earners and allow overseas absentee voting, said Casino, who is on his third term as representative.

“Bayan Muna vows to continue opposing the anti-people, unjust and corrupt politics in the nation. We believe there is hope when the people's interests come first. Our name Bayan Muna is still our number one message,” said Casino.

He told INQUIRER.net that his group would guard votes to prevent getting cheated in next year's elections like what he claimed happened in the 2004 elections, when they were cheated in 21 out of 23 municipalities in Maguindanao alone.

The group also condemned the bid of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to run as representative of Pampanga's second district. He said this was “utterly despicable and shameless act of a megalomaniac.”

Meanwhile, he cited that the party list's support for the senatorial bids of Ocampo and Maza, with the aim to field more representatives who are pro-people and incorruptible in both Senate and House.

Casino declined to comment on the lashing remark made by Bantay Representative Jovito Palparan, who filed his senatorial bid on Bonifacio Day as an attempt to fight left-wing solons Ocampo and Maza in the Senate.

“I'd rather not dignify his (Palparan's) attempt to get attention,” said Casino.

With a voters' base of at least 1.2 million, Casino said the party would win three seats in Congress again.

At this writing, 236 party list groups have filed their manifestations of intent to join the 2010 elections, Comelec Secretariat records showed.