The tandem of presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos and his running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio is open to receiving declarations of support from politicians even if it is not a "package deal" for them.
Duterte-Carpio made this revelation Thursday afternoon, Feb. 10 during a chance interview with reporters in Meycauyan City, Bulacan.
On Wednesday night, Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda--a known ally of President Duterte--endorsed the presidential bid of fellow Bicolano, Vice President Leni Robredo. Robredo is the opposition standard-bearer.
On Thursday, Salceda clarified that he was still backing Duterte-Carpio's vice presidential candidacy. He couldn't do the same for Marcos.
“Napag-usapan na namin ‘yan ni Apo BBM na (Me and Apo BBM have spoken about that and) either of us will not refuse endorsements whether individually or collectively at nagpapasalamat po tayo sa lahat ng mga kaibigan at supporters natin sa buong bansa (and we thank all of our friends and supporters in the entire country),” Duterte-Carpio said when asked to react to Salceda's pronouncements.
Former senator Marcos and Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (CMD) chairperson Duterte-Carpio comprise the so-called BBM-Sara UniTeam.
Another example of politicians who committed their support solely to Duterte-Carpio were the Villaricas of Meycauyan.
Meycauayan City Mayor Linabelle Ruth Villarica and Bulacan 4th district Rep. Henry Resurreccion Villarica both endorsed the Davao mayor's vice presidential bid during a quick visit at the city hall.
They couple assured Duterte-Carpio of the city's all-out support on election day. The latter thanked the couple for their pronouncement as well as for personally welcoming her at the city hall.
Marcos and Duterte-Carpio are the frontrunners in the surveys for president and vice president, respectively.