"He is still the President."

The Presidential Security Group (PSG) said that it will insist on joining President Duterte when he files his certificate of candidacy (COC) for vice president, saying the Commission on Elections (Comelec) cannot take the group's mandate of protecting the Chief Executive.

PSG chief Col. Randolph Cabangbang made the statement days ahead of the start of the filing period of the COC from October 1 to 8. President Duterte has expressed his intention to run for vice president in the 2022 elections.

In an interview with Malacañang reporters, Cabangbang said Comelec's policy of allowing only one companion for each aspirant may not apply to Duterte considering the position he holds.

"That is for aspirants. Remember, if he will file as an aspirant, he is still the President," he said Wednesday, September 29.

"So yung mandato po na pagse-seure sa Presidente (the mandate of securing the President) is only being given to the PSG. The Comelec cannot say na sila na ang magse-secure sa Presidente (that they will secure the President)," he added.

"Securing the President is our concern. 'Wag na nilang problemahin (They should not bother with that)," he continued.

Meanwhile, Cabangbang said the PSG continues to work hard in securing the President, even with reports that the seven-day average of daily COVID-19 cases in the country has decreased by 13 percent.

"We still maintain yung basic talaga, yung basic na (We still maintain the basic protocols like) social distancing, physical distancing, double-mask, face shield," he said.

"That is what we are also trying to ensure na pag sa mga engagements, lahat po ng mga nakapalibot sa Presidente sumusunod (when there are engagements, all those surronding the President will follow that set of protocols)," he added.

Cabangbang said that members of the PSG are also undergoing antigen tests every day and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests every 48 hours.