SENATOR Alan Peter Cayetano remains hopeful that Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will run for president even after he has filed his certificate of candidacy for reelection.
“I believe Mayor Duterte will be the best president for our country at this time,” he said in a statement on Thursday.
Cayetano, who is running for vice president, has expressed hopes that he would be Duterte’s running mate.
Duterte has filed his COC for reelection through his aide in Davao City on Thursday afternoon.
The filing came after reports that he would file a COC for president on Thursday or Friday. Some of his supporters have gathered at the Commission on Elections headquarters in Manila hoping that Duterte would show up.
Some netizens have also not given up hope because anyone can file multiple COCs but must drop the others and stick to just one before Friday’s deadline.
When Duterte’s daughter Sara shaved her head recently, she hinted that she would support his father’s presidential run. Duterte’s supporters also shaved their heads to convince the mayor to run for president.
Cayetano is still optimistic that Duterte would change his mind.
“He will either be the best President we’ve ever had or the best President we never had. It is his choice. We join our people in praying he will make the right decision,” he said.
Cayetano, who has announced that he will run for vice president late September, has yet to file his COC.