We cannot accept anyone within Duterte ‘political dynasty’, says Carpio

FILE Retired Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Antonio Carpio. —EDWIN BACASMAS

MANILA, Philippines — Retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio of the unity coalition 1Sambayan reiterated his group’s position that they cannot accept anyone within the “political dynasty” of President Rodrigo Duterte to run under their banner in the 2022 national elections.

Carpio cited the clear and unequivocal stance of the coalition against extra-judicial killings, violation of human rights, and political dynasties.

“We have made our position clear. We are against extra-judicial killings, we are against the violation of human rights. We are against political dynasties and all of these can be attributed to the president,” Carpio said in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel.

“We cannot associate ourselves with this kind of program, even how laudable it is from their point of view, they admit it has failed. And of course, President Duterte is the head of this political dynasty and so we cannot accept anyone within that political dynasty to again run this county in the next term,” he added.

Carpio said this includes presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, who earlier slammed the coalition for its supposed “othering,” a generally derogatory term coined to show rejection or exclusion of others from a certain group.

“They claim to be a coalition of democratic forces but they reject so many who do not agree with them. They sound authoritarian to me,” the presidential daughter said. The younger Duterte — who inherited her father’s position as mayor of Davao City after the latter’s election to the highest political post — has claimed that she has no plans of following her father’s footsteps, amid the proliferation of campaign materials urging her to run for the presidency.

According to Carpio, the Constitution itself prohibits political dynasty. However, Congress has failed to enact a law regarding political dynasties.

“We have to take a strong position because there are many political dynasties in the provinces but this one, they will bring the political dynasty to the national level. At present, anointing his own daughter as his successor, I think that is the height of political dynasty, that the President will choose his daughter as the successor. We cannot allow this to happen,” said the former SC justice, who is also a known constitutionalist.

During its launch, Carpio said 1Sambayan eyes to form a single slate of national candidates that would challenge the Duterte administration’s “anointed one” in the 2022 national elections.

EDV