MANILA – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said today that he will not run for vice-president next year, and will retire from politics, potentially paving the way for his daughter to contest the country’s highest office.
“The overwhelming... sentiment of the Filipinos is that I am not qualified, and it will be a violation of the constitution to circumvent the law, the spirit of the constitution” to run for the vice-presidency, Duterte said.
“Today I announce my retirement from politics.”
Duterte, who polls show remains almost as popular as when he was swept to victory in 2016 on a promise to rid the country of drugs, is constitutionally barred from seeking a second term.
The authoritarian firebrand declared in August that he would contest the vice-presidency in the next election – a move critics said was a smokescreen and motivated by fear that he could face criminal charges after leaving office.
Duterte made the surprise announcement at the venue where he was expected to register his candidacy. He did not specify when he will leave politics.
The tough-talking leader has not yet announced his preferred successor, but many expect it will be his daughter, Sara, who has been the front runner in recent polls.
She will likely protect Duterte from criminal charges in the Philippines, and International Criminal Court prosecutors probing his deadly drug war, which rights groups estimate has killed tens of thousands of people.
But the mayor of the southern city of Davao – a position held by her father before he became president – has said she will not run if Duterte seeks the vice-presidency. – AFP, October 2, 2021
