With just a day to go before the end of the filing period for certificates of candidacy (COCs), President Duterte is still hopeful that his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, would throw her hat in next year’s presidential race.
Thus, bared Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque in a virtual press briefing Thursday, Oct. 7.
"The President has from the very beginning believed that she is the most able candidate for president and apparently it's not just I who agrees with it; it's also the rest of the Filipino people if we are to believe surveys as reflective of the people’s sentiments," Roque said.
Duterte-Carpio filed last Saturday her COC for reelection as Davao mayor. She is gunning for her third term.
Asked who he thinks President Duterte would support in the Palace race next year, Roque said, "Sa ngayon po hindi ko alam dahil pareho kami ni Presidente (As of now we don't know because the President and I are the same in) that we're hoping that Sara Duterte will still run for president."
In an earlier press briefing, Roque said that filed COCs may still be withdrawn.
As far as May 2022 election scenarios go, the lady official could still become a presidential candidate even after the lapse of COC filing tomorrow, Oct. 8.
She can do this by being a substitute to a presidential candidate who filed his or her COC, for as long as the substitution takes place on or before Nov. 15, 2021.
Speaking of the different scenarios concerning the national positions, Roque was also asked about reports saying that former Senator Bongbong Marcos actually wanted President Duterte to be his running mate.
Marcos, son of the late strongman President Ferdinand Marcos, is among the handful of candidates vying for the presidency next year.
"I cannot speak for former Senator Bongbong Marcos. He may have wanted the President to become his running mate but I have no information if this was relayed to the President and if the President ever considered it," Roque said.
It was also last Saturday when Senator Christopher "Bong" Go swerved political pundits by filing his COC for vice president under ruling party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban). This meant that Go took the supposed place of President Duterte in the upcoming elections.
The elder Duterte, who subsequently announced his "retirement" from politics, said he would prefer Go to be his daughter's running mate.