MANILA, Philippines — Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio on Tuesday said she sought an alliance with the administration PDP-Laban party for a slate with presidential aspirant Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. but the party refused.
PDP-Laban is fielding Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go for president through an allied party. President Rodrigo Duterte, the Davao City mayor's father, is backing Go, his longtime aide.
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"Ang aking partido ay nakipag-alyansa at humingi ng suporta para kay Bongbong Marcos at para sa akin matapos kong tanggapin ang inyong hamon at panawagan," she said. "Tinanggihan ito ng PDP at naiintindihan natin ito (PDP rejected it, and I understand that).
Duterte-Carpio is the standard-bearer of the Lakas-CMD party while Marcos is the presidential candidate of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas. PFP issued a resolution over the weekend "adopting" Duterte-Carpio as vice-presidential candidate.
"Pero gusto ko lamang na linawin — walang pangalan na sinisira o dinudungisan, walang sinasagasaan, walang inaagrabyado, inaaway, pinapaiyak o inaapi," she said.
(But I just want to make it clear — no name is slandered or defiled, no one is abused, no one is aggrieved, fought, made to cry or oppressed)
Go has since withdrawn his candidacy for vice president under the PDP-Laban and filed to run instead as Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan's presidential candidate. PDP-Laban shortly after said that it had formed an alliance with PDDS, which is also backing the president's bid for a Senate seat.
"Sa muli, nananawagan ako ng pagkakaisa. Ang layunin natin ay hindi lamang ituloy ang mga magagandang nasimulan ni Pangulong Duterte kundi ang mas pagbutihin at mas palawigin pa ang mga ito," Duterte-Carpio said.
(Again, I call for unity. Our goal is not only to continue the good started by President Duterte but also to improve and extend them even more.)
Marcos' campaign said earlier Tuesday that he is "no longer aligned" with the administration, reversing a statement the former senator made just a month prior.