Duterte won’t attend Congress proclamation

MANILA, Philippines – Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will not show up when Congress, sitting as a board of canvassers, proclaims the winning presidential and vice presidential candidates next month.

He told reporters on Monday night that the only event he would attend would be his swearing in on June 30, when President Aquino’s six-year term of office expires.

He even joked that if his flight to Manila from Davao City was delayed, the oath taking would be delayed.

Duterte did not give a reason for his refusal to attend his proclamation.

Leaders of Congress are planning to finish their canvassing of presidential and vice presidential votes and declare the winners before June 10, when the legislature ends its third and last regular session.

The joint Senate-House of Representatives canvassing committee started its tabulation yesterday.

Meanwhile, Isabela Rep. Rodolfo Albano III yesterday likened Duterte to Jose Mujica, former leader of Uruguay who was once described as the world’s poorest president.

“Mayor Digong is like President Mujica in many ways. They are loved by their people for living simply and shunning the perks, privileges and trappings of power,” he said.

He said the incoming president, like the former Uruguayan leader, is anti-establishment and uses language that many people find foul and vulgar.

“But that is the language the masses understand,” he said.

According to Wikipedia, Jose Mujica served as the 40th president of Uruguay from March 1, 2010 to March 1, 2015.

He refused to live in the opulent presidential palace, preferring to be with his wife in her farm. He donated his salary to poor supporters. He shunned government vehicles and drove an aging 1987 Volkswagen Beetle that was valued at $1,800 in 2010.