MANILA, Philippines — Presidential aspirant Senator Panfilo Lacson on Monday shut down speculations that he will pair up with presidential daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio in the 2022 polls.
“With all due respect and not taking anything away from Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, I intend to stick it out with my partner, Senate President Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto III, as my running-mate all the way,” Lacson said in a statement.
“I believe Mayor Sara feels the same way about her presidential candidate,” he added.
Lacson then reiterated his and Sotto’s commitment to “uplift the lives of Filipinos by fixing the ills of government” and go after “thieves,” especially within the government.
Over the weekend, Duterte-Carpio meanwhile branded as “exceptionally unpleasant” talks about “possibly replacing” her presidential running mate, former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
Marcos is still facing disqualification cases before the Commission on Elections, which has yet to release the decision on several petitions seeking to disqualify the former senator on grounds that he is perpetually banned from public office due to his conviction on tax charges.
READ: Talks about ‘possibly replacing’ Marcos ‘exceptionally unpleasant,’ Sara Duterte says