Duterte’s party picks him as 2022 VP candidate

‘Bong’ Go, nominee for president, declines to run

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said yesterday he has accepted his party’s nomination to run for vice president in next year’s election.

Duterte is barred by the constitution from seeking a second term as president. His longtime aide Christopher “Bong” Go, a senator, was nominated as the party’s presidential candidate for the May 2022 polls.

Polls indicate strong support for Duterte running in tandem with his daughter, Sara Duterte, as the candidate for president — though he suggested he might step out of the vice-presidential race if she announces a bid for the top job.

Sara Duterte, 43, is currently the mayor of Davao City and is a member of the regional HNP party, which she founded in 2018. She has supported her father’s party at the national level.

‘Bong’ Go, who had told the party at the end of August that he had decided not to run for president, in what analysts suggested was a move to pave the way for Sara Duterte’s candidacy, declined the nomination.

“I repeat, I am not interested to run for president in the coming election,” he said in a statement.