Karlo Nograles no longer pushing senate bid

Davao City Representative Karlo Nograles is no longer pursuing a senatorial post in 2019.

Nograles, who is also the chair of the House Committee on Appropriations, made the announcement on Wednesday, saying that he would instead throw his support behind other candidates hailing from Mindanao.

"I am grateful for the support of all the groups and individuals who encouraged me to run for a Senate seat in 2019," Nograles said in a statement.

"However, after much introspection and after consulting members of my family, I believe that I would be able to better serve the Administration of President Rodrigo Duterte by supporting the candidacies of fellow Mindanaoans who share my desire to bring development to the regions and uplift the welfare of our kapwa probinsyanos," he added.

Nograles was among those whom former Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez endorsed for the senatorial race in the 2019 midterm elections under the banner of the ruling PDP-Laban party.

He also received an endorsement from Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Nograles added that he will campaign for Senator and PDP-Laban president Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III, Special Assistant to the President Bong Go, Bureau of Corrections chief Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa, and other senatorial hopefuls from Mindanao.

Despite the rivalry between his father, former Speaker Prospero Nograles, and the President, Nograles said his family had pledged its support to Duterte in 2015.

"We supported the President in 2015 because we believed then—as we continue to believe now—that a Mindanaoan was needed in Malacañang," Nograles said.

"We feel the same way about the Philippine Senate. The Upper Chamber can only benefit from the perspectives of those who have experienced firsthand the challenges faced by our countrymen in the provinces," he added.

Nograles said determination, sense of nationalism and compassion are the traits of a public official that the electorate is looking for.

"Our people see this in our President, and this has been validated by the laws he has signed, such as the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, which I helped pass in Congress," Nograles said.

"This is the kind of leadership I will continue to support, in whatever capacity—whether as a public official or a private citizen," he added.

Nograles is serving his third and last term at the House of Representatives, representing the 1st District of Davao City. — BM, GMA News