Duterte nixes PDP-Laban, PDDS alliance with Lakas-CMD 'because Marcos is there’
MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte said there will be no alliance between Partido Demokratiko Pilipino – Lakas ng Bayan, Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan and Lakas – Christian Muslim Democrats because of former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
Duterte is running for senator under PDDS, which is in an alliance with the ruling PDP-Laban. Marcos, meanwhile, is running for president under Partido Federal ng Pilipinas, but his running mate is Duterte’s daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, who is mounting a vice-presidential bid under Lakas-CMD.
Asked about a possible coalition between PDP-Laban, PDDS and Lakas-CMD at a meeting of local leaders in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro, Duterte said partly in Filipino, “No, I cannot. Because Marcos is there.”
“I’m not impressed with him. He is a weak leader,” Duterte continued. “He’s really weak because he’s a spoiled child, only son.”
Duterte’s remarks against Marcos may indicate a souring of relations between him and the former senator’s family, who has maintained close ties with the president. This, as the chief executive is backing the presidential bid of his long-time aide turned senator, Christopher “Bong” Go.
Marcos is the only son and namesake of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, whose iron-fisted two-decade rule over the country was marked by human rights violations and the massive plunder of government coffers.
Bongbong is heavily banking on the Marcos brand to carry him to Malacañang, seen by victims of his father’s brutal martial rule as a way for his family to get back to the presidential palace from where they were forced to flee due to a popular military-backed uprising called the People Power Revolution over three decades ago.
Marcos and PFP have announced that they have sealed an alliance with Lakas-CMD and have committed to support Duterte-Carpio’s vice-presidential run.
President Duterte, on the other hand, endorsed Go and Duterte-Carpio for president and vice president at a dinner for around 100 lawmakers in Malacañang.
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