Duterte’s sister told to reply to disqualification petition

DAVAO CITY — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) gave a younger sister of first district Rep. Rodrigo Duterte until last night to answer her brother’s petition seeking to disqualify her from the mayoral race.

In his petition, Duterte claimed that her sister Jocelyn, 52, allegedly received P1 million from his rivals for her to also vie for mayor.

The congressman asked the Comelec to declare her a nuisance candidate, noting that she is running as an independent and lacks the political machinery to back her candidacy.

Duterte claimed that his estranged sister asked P3 million from him, P1 million of which she would use to pay the amount she allegedly got from his opponents, and the rest she would keep.

Jocelyn, however, denied her brother’s allegations, saying there was really nothing new with her seeking an elective post since she ran for councilor in 1995 and 1998.

She said the people should not belittle her qualifications since she has been actively involved in non-government organizations, and in research work for a Mindanao-based company.

Jocelyn’s lawyers were expected to file her reply to the disqualification petition last night since she was reportedly out of town.

Meanwhile, incumbent Davao City Mayor Benjamin de Guzman, Duterte’s fiercest rival in the mayoral race, denied any hand in Jocelyn’s candidacy.

Besides denying any association with her, De Guzman said he would rather spend P1 million on his campaign instead of wasting money on her.

Duterte is seeking to reclaim the mayoral post which he held for three consecutive terms until he ran for Congress in 1998.