Duterte vows support for Manny Villar if he seeks presidency anew

MANILA, Philippines—President Rodrigo Duterte has vowed to support former Senate President Manny Villar should he choose to run again for president.

Duterte announced this Thursday during the initial campaign rally of the ruling party PDP-Laban in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.

Duterte, who was a congressman when Villar was the House Speaker, said Villar and wife Cynthia convinced him to run for the presidency in 2016.

“Nung talagang ano na — ang kampanya papalapit na. Si ma’am (Cynthia Villar) pati si speaker tinawag nila ako, isang hotel na suite, malaki, may sala. Usap kami. Sabi niya, sabi ni speaker pati ni ma’am, ‘Rody, tumakbo ka. Baka makatulong ka pa sa bayan’,” Duterte said.

“One of the factors kung bakit ako pumayag, si speaker. Kaya kung may presidente na suportahan ko si speaker. Sabi ko sa kanya, kung magtakbo ka, sa iyo ako. Speaker Villar,” he added.

Villar ran for president in 2010, but lost to former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, Duterte’s predecessor.

He placed third behind former president and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada.

During the same event, Duterte also praised Cynthia, whom he is endorsing in the May midterm elections.

“Kailangan natin siya because she’s just like a mother to the nation. She keeps everything in order,” he said.  /muf