Sara vouches for Erap

DAVAO CITY  , Philippines  —  Presidential daughter and Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has expressed fondness for Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada, whom she said  is more than a family friend.

President Duterte and Estrada’s friendship dates back to their  college days, particularly when the President stayed in San Juan near the Estradas.

“In my case, I became friends with Mayor Erap a year or two before the 1998 elections,” Sara said yesterday.

She said she was a student at the San Beda College of Law and she supported Estrada during the second EDSA people power revolution.

“I wanted to give Erap moral support when he was kicked out of the Palace,” Sara said, adding she waited by the park in front of Malacañang when Estrada was ousted in January 2001.

Sara said she wanted to go to Malacañang to see Estrada and tell him that he had her support.

From the Palace gate, personnel of the Presidential Security Group looked at her and her companion.

“By the look in their eyes, we could tell there was no way for us to even touch the gate. So we sat in the park,” she said.

Estrada is godfather to Sara’s third child Marko Digong or Stonefish. Earlier, he told The STAR that he asked Sara to make him godfather of her son.

Sara was also reported to have visited Estrada when he was detained at a military facility in Tanay, Rizal.