Sara succeeding President Duterte? 'That's dynasty,' says Kiko

For Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte succeeding her father, President Rodrigo Duterte, in Malacañang is clearly a political dynasty.

In a television interview on Thursday, Pangilinan said his disagrees with presidential spokesperson Harry Roque's claim that it could not be considered as a political dynasty since Duterte has repeatedly asked Sara not to run for president.

“Yes, of course. It’s a father and daughter succeeding one another, so yes, of course, that’s dynasty,” Pangilinan told ANC.

“A family member succeeding a family member, that’s pretty much a part of political dynasties. And I don’t see the point of saying because she’s being told not to run, and therefore it’s not a dynasty,” he added.

Pangilinan also agreed that having two Aquino presidents and two Macapagal presidents in the Philippine history is likewise “dynastic” but he mentioned that there are good and bad dynasties.

Duterte's predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, is son of the late President Corazon Aquino, who sat as the country’s chief executive from 1986 to 1992.

Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who ruled from 2001 to 2010, is the daughter of Diosdado P. Macapagal, the ninth president of the Philippine republic.

Unlike the Aquinos and the Macapagals, Pangilinan said it is “difficult to assess” yet the scenario of having another Duterte in Malacañang right after President Duterte.

“You know, it’s very difficult to assess at this point. For example, if it’s Sara for president, then President Duterte for [vice president], obviously that is a different scenario all together,” he said.

Nevertheless, Pangilinan has urged the Filipinos to register for the 2022 national and local elections.

“More than discussing who will run at this point, I think we should discuss why voters should register,” he said.

Pangilinan pointed out that the deadline for politicians to file their certificate of candidacies is in October while the deadline for voter registration is in September.

“[There are] 14 million eligible voters who are not registered. And we know the 14, 15, 16 million numbers are critical numbers, in terms of electing a president, a vice president, and senators,” he said.

“So we would like to get as many people to register and use their right to vote to be able to select those they believe should be supported in the coming elections,” Pangilinan added.

So far, the younger Duterte remained tight-lipped on whether she will gun for the country’s top post or not in the 2022 elections.

She, however, questioned why some are playing a “slapping game” about a Duterte-Duterte tandem being floated.

President Duterte has repeatedly said that he is discouraging Sara from running for president as she will not get anything from it apart from “sense of fulfillment.” —KBK, GMA News