Duterte closes door on presidential run

“Ayaw ko talaga (I don’t like it really).”

That was how Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday closed the door on his possible presidential run next year.

“Hindi ko talaga panahon; it’s no longer my time. Give it to someone else, yung may gusto,” he said before business executives at the Asia CEO forum in Makati.

“I never aspired to run for any national position,” he added.

Despite his continued surge in surveys, the 70-year old mayor said he would never regret his decision not to run for president.

In the latest Pulse Asia survey conducted this June, Duterte placed third with 15 percent behind Senator Grace Poe and Vice President Jejomar Binay.

He said his family does not want him to run for president.

“I never said in any forum that I am running for president, family does not want me to,” he said.

He said the successor of President Benigno Aquino III should introduce policies like tax breaks for monthly salaries of P25, 000 and below.

He added that there should also be an increase in the wages for policemen and military personnel.

Helping the poor and boosting education in the country should also be a priority of the next president.

“We cannot hope to bring this country to the next century if we cannot educate our children,” he said.

But the mayor was firm he was not running for higher office, saying he has enough “accolades to a last a lifetime.”

Duterte has been in public office for 30 years, being the city mayor of Davao for 22 years after being reelected.

He is known for his strong political will and disciplinarian leadership style in Davao City.