Duterte camp says they lacked poll watchers

Front-running presidential candidate Mayor Rodrigo Duterte gestures during a news conference shortly after voting in a polling precinct at Daniel R. Aguinaldo National High School, Matina district, his hometown in Davao city in southern Philippines Monday, May 9, 2016. Duterte was the last to vote among five presidential hopefuls. AP FILE PHOTO

The camp of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said on Tuesday they were  able to field election watchers in only 30 percent of  polling precincts.

Atty. Vitaliano Aguirre said the watchers are volunteers.

In a phone interview, he said they cannot afford to hire people to act as their watchers.

“We give them a simple token for their work but that’s it,” he said adding that they have no money, no big organization and machinery.

He said that after Duterte started to go up in the surveys weeks before the elections, the number of volunteers  increased but it is still not enough compared to the money, organization and machinery of the other candidates.

READ: Volunteers boost Duterte-Cayetano campaign amid limited machinery

“What we have is a very sellable, popular candidate. Volunteerism ang campaign namin (Our campaign bank on volunteerism). We have no funds. Up to the last minute kanya kanyang gastos (we paid using our own money),” he said.

“He always say naman na if it’s his destiny to win, so be it,” Aguirre said.

Aguirre, Duterte’s counsel since 2009 and also his classmate and fraternity brother at San Beda College of Law, said their fraternity has launched the “Brotherhood for Duterte” to convince the mayor to run for president and to support his bid.

He added that the men behind Duterte’s success are all volunteers.

Asked if Duterte could be an expression of protest against the President Benigno Aquino III’s government, he said it’s possible.

“For so many years, punung puno na ang mga tao. Para ma-elect mangangako, pero lagi namang napapako. Hindi nagbabago ang sistema,” he said.

(For so many years, the people got fed up with. [Some candidates] were just full of promises but when they win, they don’t fulfill them. The system remains the same.)

He appealed to the public to look behind the tough image of the gutter language-speaking mayor.

READ: Behind strong persona is compassionate man—Duterte backer

“He is really sincere in fixing our country despite the foul language. You have to look behind that,” Aguirre said. RAM/rga