Pimentel, Munsayac should apologize to Sara for ‘using’ her for personal agenda -Matibag

Senator Aquilino Pimentel III and PDP-Laban executive director Ron Munsayac should apologize to Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte for dragging the presidential daughter's name to further their personal agenda, PDP-Laban secretary general Melvin Matibag said Thursday.

“They should apologize. That’s very ungentlemen. I’m not being a sexist, I am sure Mayor Sara can defend herself…pero mali talaga e (That is just wrong.)…They should not behave ungentlemanly na ganyan e,” he said.

Matibag backed the statement of the presidential daughter, saying Mayor Sara’s name “should not have been used by Senator Koko Pimentel and Ron Munsayac in their propaganda.”

He likewise said Pimentel and Munsayac’s previous statements were not “sanctioned” by the ruling party and lamented that Sara was being mentioned by individuals, whom he claimed, were no longer aligned to the PDP-Laban.

“Mayor Sara is not [a member of] PDP-Laban, but we respect her as a leader also of our nation… I go back to what I’m saying that Mayor Sara should not be dragged in these issues within PDP-Laban,” he said.

“Whatever we are deciding dapat kami na lang sa PDP-Laban (it should be settled within the PDP-Laban)…So I encourage, Mr. Munsayac and Senator Koko to please refrain from mentioning the name of the good mayor to these political issues of PDP-Laban,” he added.

Furthermore, Matibag said the PDP-Laban leadership is currently reorganizing the party after Sara said she was being blamed for the “sitcom” happening within the ruling party.

Reacting to Matibag's statement, Pimentel reiterated that he never mentioned Sara's name in any of his previous statements.

However, he said his predictions are apparently coming into reality.

"I never mentioned her in my statements. And some say my prediction has been proven correct. Not the fault of the outsider. But of the insiders who insist on placing the future of the party on the outsider. That’s all I can say. Pagod na ako sa mga intriga ni Melvin (I am already tired of the intrigues made by Melvin). I have work to do," he said.

On Wednesday afternoon, Sara issued a statement, revealing that Senator Bong Go and President Rodrigo Duterte “personally” confirmed their plans to run for president and vice president, respectively, in the 2022 polls.

The Go-Duterte tandem is being pushed by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi’s faction in the PDP-Laban. Matibag is an ally of Cusi.

In the same statement, Sara slammed Pimentel and Munsayac for blaming her for the "sad state" of PDP-Laban.

"It is not my fault that no one among you is a leader worthy of the respect of the majority. Do not blame me for the sitcom that your party has been reduced to," Sara said.

"I am not a 'last two minutes' person. I think, I organize, and I implement accordingly. In the meantime, I refuse to be a political punching bag for a party in complete disarray," she said.

In response to this, Pimentel said Wednesday that he did not know why he was mentioned in Sara's statement, adding his comments on issues in the party were all addressed to Cusi as well as to Matibag.

Earlier, Munsayac said the Go-Duterte tandem is just a “smokescreen or distraction” of Cusi’s faction for Sara Duterte who is their “real candidate.”

As early as June, Pimentel had warned of gifting the ruling party’s presidential nomination to an outsider. He did not name the said "outsider."

Pimentel said this was the reason behind the ongoing intramurals between his group and the faction led by Cusi.

However, Cusi denied that they are preparing the party to field an “outsider” for its standard bearer in Eleksyon 2022.

Pimentel and Munsayac’s faction is pushing Senator Manny Pacquiao to be the PDP-Laban’s standard bearer for the 2022 polls.—AOL, GMA News