MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte is “indirectly endorsing” former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for president, the chief executive’s adviser on political affairs Jacinto Paras said Wednesday.
Marcos is the running mate of Duterte’s daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio who is gunning for the vice presidency.
“We can probably surmise that—you cannot detach the fact that the PDP-Laban has endorsed [Marcos] and at the same time, the president is the chairman of PDP-Laban,” he said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.
READ: After PDP-Laban endorsement of Marcos Jr., Duterte insists neutrality
“So, it goes without saying that the president is actually indirectly endorsing Bongbong Marcos. Alam mo ang ating pangulo (You know, our president) is very consistent. He’s a man who follows his words. When he said that he is not endorsing, he is consistent with that,” the adviser further noted.
Duterte recently reiterated that he does not have any preferred successor now, even until the end of the year, which is already beyond the May 9 polls.
Earlier, Paras urged Duterte to endorse Marcos as he is the “best” person to protect him from supposed trumped up charges when his term ends in June.
To date, the President has endorsed his daughter and several other hopefuls seeking a Senate seat.