Duterte says he will now ‘consider’ presidential bid

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is now considering running for president in the 2016 elections.

In his weekly program at a local news channel there on Sunday, Duterte said, "I will consider the suggestion of my friends and supporters."

He also said he will stop issuing statements that he is not interested in running for the top executive post.

Duterte, known for his hard line on crime and who has been repeatedly linked to a vigilante group in Davao City, has earlier maintained that he is not running for president next year.

"Wala ho akong pera at matanda na po ako," he told Jessica Soho in an interview late last month. "I am ready to retire from public office after nitong 2016."

He added that he isn't aspiring for any national position.

But in the latest Pulse Asia survey on possible presidential bets, Duterte ranked third with 15 percent, behind neophyte Senator Grace Poe and Vice President Jejomar Binay.

The latest poll from the Social Weather Stations showed that Duterte is fourth top choice for president with 20 percent, after Poe, Binay, and Interior Secretary Mar Roxas. —Rose-An Jessica Dioquino and Sandra Aguinaldo/KBK, GMA News