It is possible for the Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban) to endorse Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio as the party’s presidential candidate, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said on Monday, Oct. 4.
“It is a possibility. The President said that right after Sen. (Christopher) Bong Go filed his candidacy, saying Sara-Go na,” Cusi said in an interview on ANC’s Headstart.
“When the President said that, I think he was enticing Mayor Sara to throw her hat in the presidency, but unfortunately she filed her COC (certificate of candidacy) for mayor...so I don’t know what will happen,” the Cabinet official said.
Duterte-Carpio has said she will not run for president especially if her father is keen on seeking the vice presidency. But Duterte has withdrawn his nomination to be PDP-Laban’s vice presidential candidate and instead supported Go instead.
Go has filed his COC last Saturday Oct. 2 as the PDP-Laban’s vice presidential bet for the May 2022 elections.
Cusi, however, believes Duterte-Carpio—who founded her own regional political party, the Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP)—can rejoin the PDP-Laban.
“She can opt to rejoin PDP because she was also a PDP (member) before,” Cusi pointed out.
“So she can rejoin and that will be an open option,” he said.
He also said the PDP-Laban can also adopt a candidate “that is aligned to our advocacies.”
“We can adopt a candidate that is aligned to our advocacies, pwede pong mangyari yun (That can happen),” Cusi stressed.