MANILA, Philippines—Doctor Willie Ong on Saturday bared that someone tried to talk him into withdrawing from the vice presidential race.
In his Facebook livestream, Ong said that someone told him to withdraw two weeks before the election to support a certain candidate.
The running mate of presidential candidate Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso said that the person, whose identity he refused to divulge, visited him in December 2021.
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“Ang sabi sa akin, two weeks before election meron daw siyang pakiusap sa akin. Ang pakiusap daw nya, sabihin ko daw, na aatras ako? Ano ako, sira ulo? Sabihin ko daw aatras ako tapos susuportahan daw yung isang kandidato,” the doctor said.
(They told me, two weeks before the election, they would like me to withdraw. Do you think I’m insane? They told me to say that I was supporting another candidate.)
Ong also said that the unidentified person offered something in exchange of his withdrawal.
“Sabi ko, anong pinagsasabi ng taong to? O mamaya sasabihin nya, ‘Pag ginawa mo yan Doc, OK ka na, sayo na ang DOH, sayo na ang 2025 Senator, ipi-print pa kita t-shirt, malamang may budget ka pa,’ yan style eh,” Ong said.
(I said, what is this person saying? Later on, they might say, “If you do that, then you will be OK. DOH will be yours, a 2025 Senate run, I will print T-shirts for you, and you will have a budget. ” That’s their style.)
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He continued: “Alam ba to ng boss nya o gawa-gawa lang niya ? I will not speculate. I will not speculate, alam mo naman hindi din ako maninira, hindi ko din sasabihin kung sino. But the point is, the point is, ganoon ang galawan.”
(Does their boss know about this or are they making this up? I will not speculate; you know that I don’t talk bad about others, I’m not going to say who it is. But the point is, that’s how they move.)
Ong previously said that he will not back out from the vice presidential race, saying he will not leave his followers behind.
READ: Doc Willie Ong vows not to quit VP race