Solon: Sara Duterte accepted my apology over speaker race ‘text’ issue

MANILA, Philippines – Anakalusugan party-list Rep. Mike Defensor said Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte -Carpio has accepted his apology after he showed a text message supposedly from the presidential daughter that she was urging legislators to reject President Rodrigo Duterte’s choice for House speaker.

“I was able to text her personally to apologize. And in fact, she thanked me for apologizing, and that if there’s anything to clarify or to verify, for me to contact her directly. And I appreciate Mayor Inday for that,” Defensor said in an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel.

Defensor previously showed reporters a text message from a neophyte House of Representatives member from Davao but refused to name the lawmaker.

The text message reads: “Hi sir! I have the go signal of Mayor Inday to publish. ‘Kaya nanawagan siya ngayon sa lahat ng mga Congressmen na bumoto ayon sa kanilang kagustuhan dahil ang kanya ama ay na set-up lamang ng mga gahaman na gabinete na kaalyado ni Cayetano.’ — Mayor Inday.”

READ: Text stirs talk of House members unhappy with speakership deal 

Duterte-Carpio said he did not send the text message.

READ: ‘Not mine,’ Sara Duterte says of text urging Cayetano’s rejection 

“What happened was when I showed it I did not see that there was a quote unquote Mayor Inday. It was unfair that if you will read it, it will seem that it really came from her,” Defensor explained.

“When I showed the text, I didn’t know there was a name. So I apologized immediately. If It was just a text without a name, I think that would’ve been fine. It was wrong of me to involve her in the Speakership race,” he added. /gsg