DAVAO CITY, Davao del Sur--The declarations of support for the UniTeam tandem of presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos and his running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte keep coming mere days before the elections.

On Friday, May 6, Duterte thanked a large group of cooperatives dubbed the National Coalition of Cooperatives in the Philippines for backing her and Marcos.

In a statement, the lady mayor said, "Ang pag-endorso ng grupo sa pamamagitan ng chairperson nito na si Freddie Hernandez ay malaking tulong para makamit ng UniTeam ang aming mga mithiin para sa mga Pilipino at sa Pilipinas (The endorsement of this group headed by Freddie Hernandez is a huge help in achieving the UniTeam's goals for the Philippines and Filipinos)."

The national and local elections will take place on Monday, May 9.

Just three days ago, the UniTeam duo gained perhaps its most significant endorsement of all--that of the influential bloc-voting religious sect, Iglesia ni Cristo (INC).

Duterte cited the importance of cooperatives in nation-building.

“Ang ating mga kooperatiba ay kasama ng ating pamahalaan sa pagbibigay ng oportunidad sa mga komunidad sa pamamagitan ng pagpapalakas ng ating mga micro, small, and medium enterprises o MSMEs na isa sa mga haligi ng ating ekonomiya (Our cooperatives are the government’s partners in providing opportunities to the community through the strengthening of micro, small, and medium enterprises or MSMEs, which buttresses our economy)," she said.

Duterte added: “Higit sa lahat, mahalaga ang tulong ng mga kooperatiba sa pagbuo ng mapayapang lipunan (Most of all, cooperatives are a huge help to forming peaceful communities)."

The presidential daughter vowed that UniTeam would take steps to strengthen cooperatives in the country should she and Marcos become victorious following Monday’s elections.