Speaker on feud with Sara: I surrender

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez is waving the white flag in his rift with President Duterte’s daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.

“Surrender na nga ako e. Surrender na (I am surrendering),” he told reporters in Surigao City on Thursday, days after being at the receiving end of the mayor’s tirades.

The Speaker, a close friend of the President, declined to comment further on his feud with the younger Duterte during a chance interview with local media, a transcript of which was released by his office to Manila reporters.

In a separate press briefing, Alvarez again adopted a conciliatory tone when asked to comment on Sara’s newly formed Hugpong ng Pagbabago party.

He noted that some members of the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) had switched allegiances to the new party, among them Compostela Valley Gov. Jayvee Tyron Uy.

Defections

But Alvarez, a Davao del Norte representative, implied that he was not concerned about the defections, saying: “It’s a regional party. The PDP is a national party and both are supporting the administration of the President.”

Last week, Sara issued scathing public statements against Alvarez after he supposedly described her party as part of the opposition since it was not sanctioned by the President.

The mayor also alleged that the Speaker had boasted before a crowd that he, as the Speaker, could impeach Mr. Duterte. Alvarez denied those claims but he did not retaliate against her.

The enmity on Sara’s side led to speculations about a possible showdown in the House of Representatives.

Sara did not discount the possibility of running for Congress and challenging Alvarez for the speakership. —DJ YAP