Notwithstanding his belief that a Duterte-Duterte at the helm of the national leadership cannot be considered a political dynasty, Hugpong ng Pagbabago secretary general and former Davao del Norte Governor Anthony del Rosario declared Wednesday, July 14 that this simply will not happen.
In a virtual press conference, Del Rosario said he sees nothing wrong in the electorate putting Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte and her father, President Rodrigo Duterte as president and vice president of the country.
“Each candidate is voted separately. Kung maganda ang naipakita ni Presidente Digong (If President Duterte made a good showing) then it follows that a lot of people like this kind of governance to continue on,” Del Rosario, who was also designated HNP spokesman, said.
“Kami sa HNP, hindi kami naniniwala na political dynasty itong nangyayaring ito. (We in the HNP do not believe this is political dynasty) After all there is an electoral process, pagdating ng elections, everbody is free to vote whoever candidate they vote for,” he explained.
Reacting to the recent Pulse Asia poll survey indicating that Mayor Duterte and President Duterte leading the pack of possible presidential and vice presidential contenders, respectively, Del Rosario said he sees no problem if the two indeed win.
“For as long as there is no duress when it comes to voting, I don’t see why this is a political dynasty,” stressed Del Rosario.
However, the HNP spokesman said a Duterte-Duterte tandem running the affairs of the national government is not expected to happen.
He noted that Mayor Duterte, who co-founded the HNP, is against it.
According to Del Rosario the city mayor has already told him that even if she decides to run for president, she will reconsider this decision if her father will file his candidacy for vice president.
“She is not interested and she does not see a Duterte-Duterte tandem,” Del Rosario revealed.
Instead of seeking the presidency, the city executive will just support her father and his choice for president.
There have been speculations that Duterte is eyeing Senator Christopher “Bong” Go to be his successor even as he has time and again rejected recommendations for Mayor Duterte run to become the next chief executive.