MANILA, Philippines — Presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said Wednesday he is not worried that President Rodrigo Duterte preferred another lawyer to be his successor.
During the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum, Marcos was asked if the latest pronouncements of Duterte, himself a lawyer, that a decisive and compassionate lawyer is an ideal president of the country would pose a problem for him despite being the consistent frontrunner in various popularity surveys.
There are only two lawyers among the presidential candidates — one of which is Vice President Leni Robredo, who was a far second to Marcos in the surveys. The other lawyer among presidential hopefuls was Jose Montemayor Jr., also a medical doctor.
“No (I’m not worried),” said Marcos. “That’s what he thinks, because he is a lawyer and I’m sure he found the fact that he was a lawyer, that he found that his legal training to be of use, and that’s what he’s saying that.”
“But it’s not necessarily the case. Marami pang ibang sinabi si Pangulo… Alam mo naman si PRRD (Duterte) talagang, let’s just say, he’s a very seasoned politician,” he added.
(The President has also said other things before. You know President Duterte, let’s just say he’s a very seasoned politician.)
Duterte previously said he is not endorsing any presidential candidate for now unless “there would be a compelling reason” to do so. The President said he prefers to stay neutral.