Duterte won’t come to his party

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. KIMBERLY DE LA CRUZ/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

DAVAO CITY, Philippines—Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Monday appealed to his supporters not to push through with a rally at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila on Saturday aimed at getting him to change his mind about not running for president.

“Stop it, you’ll get nothing from it,” Duterte said in a press conference at a hotel here on Monday.

The mayor, who has announced that he is not running for president next year, said he will not show up at the rally.

“I will not be part of that exercise,” he said.

Before reporters, Duterte said his decision not to run was final.

He said that aside from financial constraints, his family was against the idea and they were worried about his health.—Karlos Manlupig, Inquirer Mindanao