Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. FILE PHOTO
It’s official: Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will not run for president in the 2016 elections.
Duterte made the announcement past 4 p.m. on Monday at Grand Men Seng Hotel in Davao City.
“I am not running. I’m sorry,” Duterte said in a press conference.
Duterte added that he will “retire from public life for good” in 2016.
“I believe it’s no longer my time to be in politics,” he said.
Amid public clamor urging him to run for president, Duterte has repeatedly said he was not interested in seeking the top national post because of a “flawed government system,” opposition from his family, and lack of funds, among other reasons.
However, at a rally organized by the Mayor Rodrigo Duterte for President movement in Davao City in August, the tough-talking mayor told his supporters to give him “more time to decide.”
Duterte’s camp on Sunday said the mayor would make an “important announcement” today. Yuji Vincent Gonzales/JE with reports by Karlos Manlapig, Inquirer Mindanao bureau correspondent
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