SEN. Christopher Go said President Duterte is open to running for the Senate next year if it will help administration candidates win.
“He is considering, pinag-aaralan niyang mabuti. Kung makakatulong ba sa bayan… he might. Kino-consider niya po yung pagtakbo (He is considering, he is studying very carefully. If he can be of help to the country…he might. He is considering a Senate run),” Go said in an interview Tuesday.
Duterte is being convinced to seek a Senate seat by a faction of the ruling PDP-Laban party led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, which also urged him earlier to run for vice president. Duterte has agreed, but later dropped the vice presidency bid. Go is now the faction’s vice presidential candidate. The standard bearer is Sen. Ronald dela Rosa.
The other faction has Sen. Emmanuel Pacquiao as presidential candidate and Rep. Lito Atienza as VP bet.
Go said PDP-Laban Cusi-faction will meet before November 15 to finalize their candidates for next year’s elections.
November 15 is the deadline for the substitution of candidates.
Dela Rosa yesterday said said he will withdraw from the presidential race if former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will be adopted by the PDP-Laban Cusi faction.
“Magkakampi kami in the sense na under one roof kami pero as far as mag-withdraw ako in his favor, malabo mangyari yan dahil hindi ko naman siya ka-partido. Pero kapag sinabi ng party na mag-withdraw ako at i-adopt si Senator Bongbong, walang problema (We are allies in the sense that we are under one roof. But as far as withdrawing my candidacy in his favor, that will not happen because he is not a member of the party. But if the party tells me to and it will adopt si Senator Bongbong, no problema),” he said.
Dela Rosa has also said he is willing to give way to presidential daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, if she eventually decides to run for president.
Dela Rosa told Marcos haters to just show their disgust through the ballot. He also said if Marcos has really been convicted, it is up to the courts to decide on the latter’s presidential run.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will look into a petition filed against Marcos as soon as possible, its spokesman James Jimenez said yesterday.
The petition filed late Tuesday by different people’s organizations seeks the cancellation of Marcos’ certificate of candidacy (COC).
In a statement, Marcos spokesman Victor Rodriguez, said they have yet to receive an official copy of the petition. Nevertheless, he called the case a “predictable nuisance petition” filed as part of election propaganda.
“We shall address this predictable nuisance petition at the proper time and forum – after we receive the official copy of the same. Until then, we will refrain from commenting on their propaganda,” said Rodriguez.
Jimenez said the petition is set to be raffled to either the First or Second Division of the Comelec. Subsequently, summonses will be issued and served, with respondents to be given five days to file answers. A pre-conference will then be held, wherein parties will be given three days to submit their respective memoranda. Lastly, Jimenez said, the matter will be deemed submitted for resolution of the poll body.
Groups of political detainees, human rights advocates, and medical organizations that opposed martial law filed with the Comelec a “Petition to Cancel or Deny Due Course the Certificate of Candidacy for President of Marcos.” They said Marcos’ COC contains multiple false material representations.
In particular, they accused Marcos of falsifying his COC when he said he is eligible to be a candidate for president. They said Marcos is not eligible to run for any public office because he is a convicted criminal based on the decision of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court back on July 27, 1995 regarding his multiple failure to file income tax returns. They said the conviction was upheld by the Court of Appeals and was no longer appealed before the Supreme Court, thereby making it a final and unappealable conviction.
“Having been convicted by final judgment of a violation of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), Marcos is perpetually disqualified from holding any public office, to vote, and to participate in any election as mandated under the NIRC,” said the petitioners in a statement.
“The crimes for which Marcos was convicted by final judgement are also crimes involving moral turpitude that disqualifies Marcos from being a candidate for any office under Section 12 of the Omnibus Election Code,” they added. — With Gerard Naval
