PDP-Laban Cusi wing claims attack vs Duterte tied to 2022 polls
The increasing attacks against President Duterte are desperate attempts to thwart the Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban’s looming victory in the upcoming May 2022 national elections, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said on Tuesday.
“Why do critics abound? It is because the 2022 national elections are only a few months away and President Duterte by far still commands very high trust and satisfaction ratings,” said Cusi in a statement.
Duterte had earlier launched a tirade against select members of the Senate after the Senate blue ribbon committee proceeded with its investigation into the alleged anomalous procurement of overpriced COVID-19 supplies which had been flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA).
The President has just recently accepted the PDP-Laban’s nomination for him to run as the ruling political party’s vice presidential candidate in next year’s polls alongside Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go.
Despite the opposition’s attempt to stop the President from gaining more popularity, Cusi noted that the President still enjoys unprecedented trust and support from the Filipino people.
Citing a Pulse Asia survey conducted from June 7 to 16, the Cabinet official said Duterte registered a 65 percent overall approval rating and a 55 percent trust rating, ahead of five other government officials included in the survey.
“This is why the opposition keeps on bringing up issues even without concrete evidence,” said Cusi, who leads a faction in the PDP-Laban.
“They have to make the people hate this administration for them to have a chance at victory,” he added.
Cusi pointed out the country’s political history is replete with cases of credible people being destroyed because of politics, lamenting that the prevailing political system is based on personalities and not on principles.
But Cusi said the PDP-Laban advocates continuity, not of personalities, but of programs, governance, and leadership, started by the President.
“President Duterte stands for principled leadership. His advocacy against drugs, criminality, terrorism, corruption, and poverty has resulted in positive changes and reforms. The people felt it, saw it, knew it. No matter what the critics say, President Duterte’s advocacies resulted in positive gains,” he pointed out.
“We need stability, we need a steady hand, we need to be resilient. President Duterte has delivered tangible results; President Duterte will continue to deliver tangible results,” the official said.