Sara Duterte clarifies she has ‘no opinion on divorce’

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Presidential daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio clarified that she has never publicly expressed her opposition towards the passage of a divorce law.

Duterte-Carpio, the Davao City mayor, made this statement on Thursday, April 26, in a press conference with Davao politicians under the Tapang at Malasakit (Courage and Compassion) alliance.

“Personally, I do not have an opinion on divorce because I am not a member of the House of Representatives,” she told a reporter who asked whether the mayor opposed the divorce bill now being deliberated in Congress.

The only daughter of President Rodrigo Duterte with his former wife Elizabeth Zimmerman made the clarification after it was earlier reported that her father said he does not support the bill because “my daughter is not happy with that.”

To recall, Duterte brought the topic in his April 18 speech at the mlilitary’s change of command  ceremony at the Philippine capital. He was addressing House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, who had recently ran into a public spat with Duterte-Carpio.

(READ: Duterte against divorce – Malacañang)

‘It was a joke.’ But Duterte-Carpio explained that her father was not serious in that speech and that many “did not understand that it was a joke.”

“He’s always like that, never explaining that (some things he say) were a joke,” Duterte-Carpio said in a mix of Cebuano.

The Mayor also clarified no religious groups have reached out to her to oppose the divorce bill at the House, and said the same topic had never reached the family table, when both she and the President are at home.

“‘We don’t discuss that with PRD (President Rodrigo Duterte) because when we talk, we discuss family issues, except on the NPA to which he has sentiments, as far as I remember,” she said.

Duterte-Carpio is one of the 3 children of the President with Zimmerman, the other being former Vice Mayor Paolo and Sebastian. Zimmerman sought to nullify her marriage with Duterte in 1998.

Court records showed that the former wife was on the receiving end of “emotional abuse” from Duterte.

While legally separated and now with his common-law wife Honeylet Avancena, the President has not cut his ties with Zimmerman. (READ: Duterte: ‘Given another life, I would still marry Elizabeth) – Rappler.com