Duterte urges Bello to run for Senate, again calls Go ‘president’

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday urged Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III to run for senator and once again touted his aide Senator Bong Go as a future president.

“Kayo andito si Bebot Bello. Si Secretary Bello. Magsenador ka rin [Bello is here. Bello, be a senator],” Duterte said in a speech at the joint meeting of the National Task Force - Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict in Eastern Visayas in Tacloban, Leyte.

He also mistakenly said “Senator Bello” while greeting the government officials who attended the event at the hotel.

The Chief Executive, later on, once again referred to Go as "president" while discussing his planned distribution of lands to rebel returnees.

“Puro heneral ito, si Bong lang ang Presidente. Ayaw mo Bong? Mamili tayo, kasi ayaw ko rin. Pagod na ako,” the president said.

[Present here are all generals. Go is the only president. Don’t you want to be president? Let’s discuss because I’m already tired.]

This is the third time this month that Duterte called Go as president. The first time was during a Cagayan de Oro event last March 5.  He also said Go wanted to be president last March 11 during his speech at the inauguration of Port Operations Building, Port of Dumaguete in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental. — BM, GMA News