Mayor’s son says his townhouse is not a poll issue

Sebastian Duterte. FACEBOOK PHOTO/Davao Breaking News

DAVAO CITY, Philippines—The youngest son of presidential race front-runner Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday said his townhouse in San Juan City was not a campaign issue.

Sebastian Duterte said he found unreasonable and absurd that his father’s rivals were making a fuss about the townhouse, which he used when he was student in Manila.

“I lived in that house when I was 13 years old, when I started schooling at San Beda. I did not know at the time that the property was in my name,” he said.

He said during his early years in high school, he lived with his father because his mother left for the United States after their marriage ran into problems.

“My father and I could not get along. He easily got annoyed with me because I was a slowpoke, and that was the phase I used to gel for hair spikes. And I also failed some of my subjects,” he said.

READ: Davao City mayor’s youngest son owns San Juan townhouse

Address for bank account

He said his father sent him to Manila so that his sister Sara, who was studying in the capital, could look after him. His father also told him to look after his sister, he said.

The San Juan townhouse landed in the news after documents released by Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV last week showed it was used by the Davao City mayor and Sara as one of their addresses in opening a joint account at the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) on Julia Vargas Avenue, Pasig City.

Trillanes charged that Duterte has P227 million in that account, which the mayor did not declare in his financial disclosure.

Acquired in 2000, the townhouse has a declared value of more than P1.5 million as of 2001.

Acquired on a loan

Sebastian Duterte said he had no knowledge of the acquisition of the townhouse. He added, however, that knowing his father’s financial status, “most likely the property was acquired through a loan.”

He said his father’s rivals should not sensationalize the property and they should instead deal with the more pressing problems of the country.

He said there was nothing wrong about putting the property in his name because it was only normal for parents to ensure the future of their children.

“I would eventually inherit it,” he said. TVJ