Duterte to PDP-Laban: Stay united, prioritize people’s welfare

President Rodrigo Duterte. FILE PHOTO / MALACAÑANG PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has urged his Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) party mates to remain united in staying true to their mission of prioritizing the welfare of the people.

“Over the years, the PDP-Laban has revolutionized our country’s political landscape by pursuing genuine reforms and good governance at both the national and local levels. I, thus, urge all my party mates to stay true to the party mission which has always been to prioritize the welfare of the people,” Duterte said in a taped message during PDP-Laban’s national assembly on Monday.

As the country grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, Duterte said this will strengthen the party’s gains in governance including “those that will foster lasting peace and progress for our nation.”

“Again, I call on all of my party mates to band together and remain united, not by personal interest, but by our principles and values as we chart the future of our party and the rest of the nation,” Duterte said.

The President’s call for unity within PDP-Laban comes after the seeming bickering among its members over the party’s national assembly.

PDP-Laban’s acting president Senator Manny Pacquiao discouraged members from attending the assembly called by the party’s vice-chair and Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi.

Later on, it was revealed that Duterte himself ordered Cusi to convene the PDP-Laban members.

It was not the first seeming rift within PDP-Laban. Earlier, some of its members urged Duterte to run as vice president in the 2022 polls through a resolution, but Pacquiao said this was “not authorized.”

JE