Padilla rejects opposition tag on Duterte-led PDP

Sen. Robinhood Padilla (Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Robin Padilla rejected the notion that the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP), led by former President Rodrigo Duterte, is now part of the opposition.

Padilla made the remark amid the perceived rift between the Dutertes and the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

“Sa huli naming pagsasama ni [former] mayor [Duterte] napakaganda ng sinabi niya kay Pangulong Bongbong Marcos. Hindi ko maka-classify na oposisyon kami doon sa huling pahayag ni dating pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte, kasi ang ganda ng sinabi niya. Una sinabi niya hindi corrupt si Bongbong. Palagay ko wala nang gaganda pa doon sa sinabi niya,” Padilla said in an ambush interview here at Manila Hotel Tent City where he accompanied PDP’s senatorial bets who filed their certificate of candidacies.

(In our last interaction, former mayor Duterte said very nice things about President Bongbong Marcos. We could not classify ourselves as an opposition based on former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s because of the nice things that he said. First of all, he said that Bongbong is not corrupt. I think nothing could be as nice a statement as that.)

Padilla also said: “Hindi ko kailanman inisip na may kalaban kami, kahit anong partido.”

(It never occurred to me that there was any party that we stood opposed to.)

Padilla is the president of PDP, and Duterte is its chairman.

However, Padilla noted that they may have a stance of “opposition” in matters like geopolitics.

“Siguro pag pinag-usapan natin ang geopolitics, siguro doon opposition kami. Kapag geopolitics, tinatanggap namin iyon, opposition kami doon,” he said.

(We may be an opposition in that regard when we talk about geopolitics. When it’s about geopolitics, we admit, we are an opposition.)

READ: Duterte on PH court win over China: ‘That’s just paper; I’ll throw that in the wastebasket’

Despite the mounting tensions in the West Philippine Sea, Duterte pivoted to China while Marcos reversed this move, allowing developments like the deployment of United States’ mid range capability missile in the country, as well as the conduct of biggest ever war games and joint maritime patrols between Manila and Washington in the western section of the former’s exclusive economic zone.