PDP exec hoping for Duterte's 'personal endorsement' of Bongbong

PDP-Laban secretary-general and Cabinet Secretary Melvin Matibag on Tuesday said he is hoping President Rodrigo Duterte will personally endorse presidential candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. before the May 9 elections.

This, after senatorial candidate Salvador Panelo disclosed that Duterte will join PDP-Laban's campaign rally in Cebu on March 31.

"I don't want to speculate but as a PDP-laban, we already made the endorsement of [former] Senator Bongbong Marcos to be the next president. I'm also hoping that the president will make a personal endorsement," Matibag said in a press conference.

"So sana bago dumating ang eleksyon mayroon ng darating na endorsement but I don't want to preempt or pangunahan ang pangulo sa kanyang mga personal na pag-endorso sa susunod na magiging pangulo," he added.

(So I hope that before the elections the endorsement from him will come but I don't want to pre-empt the president on his personal endorsement.)

The PDP-Laban official said Duterte is expected to attend around 20 campaign rallies of the party.

However, Matibag explained anew that while the PDP-Laban officially endorsed Marcos's presidential bid, it is up to Duterte, the party chairman, to directly endorse his preferred candidate for the presidency.

For his part, Panelo said an official endorsement from Duterte is no longer needed as the president has repeatedly said he wanted a candidate that will continue his programs.

"Noong kami po ay magkausap, may sinasabi siyang neutral subalit sa tingin ko, alam niyo, hindi na kailangan ng hayagan na endorsement sapagkat malinaw naman na sa kanyang mga pahayag sinasabi niya na yung mga sinulong niyang reporma sa gobyerno ay kailangan maipagpatuloy," Panelo said.

(During our recent talk, he said he will be neutral, but I think we don't need an open endorsement from the president because it is clear in his statements that he wanted his programs to continue.)

"Ibig pong sabihin  kung sino po ang nanunumpa at nagsusulong ng papapatuloy ng pagbabago na sinimulan niya, 'yon ang kanyang gustong maging presidente. Kung sino ang nananawagan ng pagkakaisa 'yun din ang gusto niya," he added.

(That means the candidate who vowed to push and continue what the President has started will get the President's endorsement. Someone who is calling for unity.)

Panelo said he is not expecting Duterte to endorse a candidate who is always opposed to his decisions and who has maligned him since the start of his administration.

Last week, the PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi announced the party's endorsement of Marcos' presidential bid.

This move was opposed by their rival faction, which is led by Senator Aquilino Pimentel III and presidential candidate Senator Manny Pacquiao. Pimentel's group asserted that the PDP-Laban was formed to oppose the dictatorship of Bongbong's father, late former President Ferdinand Marcos.

Prior to the endorsement of Marcos' presidency, the Cusi-led faction also expressed support for the vice presidential bid of Marcos' running-mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, the President's daughter.

These two factions of the PDP-Laban are vying for recognition before the Commission on Elections. In 2021, the Cusi-led wing asked the poll body to declare Pimentel and Pacquiao as illegal representatives of the party.

Meanwhile, Matibag said they respect the statement of Lourdes “Bing” Pimentel, widow of PDP-Laban founder and late Senate President Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr., slamming the party's decision to back Bongbong Marcos.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/826482/nene-pimentel-widow-slams-pdp-laban-faction-s-endorsement-of-marcos-jr/story/

"We respect Nanay Bing’s opinion. We value it and we listen to it, but we have to recognize that ang PDP Laban is a political party with a democratic process na sinusunod [which we follow]," Matibag said in the same press conference.

He reiterated that the decision is not a "personal call" of Cusi but a collective decision of the majority of PDP-Laban members.

Panelo, on the other hand, asserted that there was an "inconsistency" in Koko Pimentel's opposition to the party's endorsement of Marcos' bid.

"Nakakalimutan na sa ilalim ni Senador Koko Pimentel, sinuportahan niya ang isang kandidato noong 2016 na hayagan na sinasabi ang kanyang idolo ay si President Ferdinand Marcos at tinutukoy natin ay si President Rodrigo Duterte. Sinasabi nya na hayagan na ang kanyang sinusundan, ang kanyang template bilang pangulo ay si Presidente Marcos," Panelo said.

(Did we forget that under Senator Koko Pimentel, PDP-Laban has supported a candidate in 2016 who openly stated that his idol is President Ferdinand Marcos? I am pertaining to President Rodrigo Duterte. He openly said that his template for presidency is President Marcos.)

Panelo also noted that it was Duterte who allowed the burial of the elder Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

Pimentel refused to answer Panelo, saying he cannot find the logic behind the senatorial candidate's statement.

"Hindi ko kayang sagutin ang sinabi niya kasi hindi ko masundan ang logic niya [I cannot answer what he said because I cannot follow his logic]," Pimentel told GMA News Online in a text message.

PDP-Laban has no candidates for president and vice president in the 2022 elections amid the infighting between the two factions.

Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, President Duterte's longtime aide, initially filed his candidacy for vice president under PDP-Laban, while Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, a staunch Duterte ally, originally filed his candidacy for president under the ruling party.

Go, however, withdrew his bid after Sara Duterte filed her candidacy for vice president. Dela Rosa, meanwhile, withdrew his candidacy.

Go filed a COC for president as a substitute under Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan (PDDS), a party allied with the PDP-Laban. He also withdrew his presidential bid later on.  —KBK, GMA News