President Rodrigo Duterte will likely abandon his plan to run for vice president in 2022 if his daughter Sara Duterte decides to seek the presidency and agrees to team up with Senator Bong Go, says Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs Jacinto Paras.

“I’m confident that the President is just titillating that he is running for vice president but I think, at the end of the day, the President always wants to push his trusted man Senator Bong Go to become vice president, and of course, his daughter,” he said on Thursday, July 15, in a Rappler Talk Newsmaker interview.

Paras echoes views of some Duterte supporters backing a Sara-Bong Go tandem. He admitted there are “implications” should the President run as the vice president of his daughter.

“‘Yung Duterte-Duterte kasi, syempre Duterte for president, Duterte for vice president, medyo may ano rin nang kaunti, mayroon ding implication ‘yon, pero ‘pag proxy naman ni Duterte na ‘Little Duterte’ rin na si Bong Go, kaya pinili ng tao yung Sara Duterte-Bong Go tandem,” he said.

(The Duterte-Duterte tandem, especially Duterte for president, Duterte for vice president, it has an implcation but if it’s a proxy of Duterte, a ‘Little Duterte’ like Bong Go, that’s why people want a Sara Duterte-Bong Go tandem.)

Go’s low numbers

But though Sara has led three Pulse Asia surveys on possible 2022 presidential candidates, Go has not performed quite as well. He has consistently garnered only single-digit ratings and is even below or at par with the ratings of Vice President Leni Robredo. No less than Malacañang has belittled Robredo’s ratings in surveys.

This is despite Go’s constant public appearances with Duterte and his persistent attendance in government events all over the country.

Asked to elaborate on the “implications” of a Duterte-Duterte tandem, Paras said, “The implication is that it’s never been done in this country. This is the first time so people will say, although the President is doing well… I don’t know if Mayor Sara would kowtow to that Duterte-Duterte because she’s said, I will not run if my father will.”

To “avoid any complication,” the President may just give way to a tandem that does not include him, said Paras.

Duterte, despite saying he is “seriously considering” running for vice president to continue with his government advocacies, has also said his VP bid is for political leverage.

“Ako naman ‘yung vice president ko pantakot lang sa kanila ‘yan. But sabi ko, let us see if it is – kaya ako, if it is good for the country, I will do it,” said Duterte last Monday, July 12.

(The vice presidential bid is just to scare them off. But I said let us see if it is – if it is good for the country, I will do it.)

‘Nabigla lang’

While Duterte placed first among possible vice presidential bets in Pulse Asia’s June survey, his lead from other candidates was not as big as Sara’s lead among possible presidential bets.

In his bailiwick of Mindanao, 14% of respondents would go for Senator Manny Pacquiao over him. Duterte still led in the region, garnering 35% of support.

Paras interprets this as Duterte’s supporters still wrapping their heads around the possibility of a president running for vice president.

“Naninibago lang siguro sila na isang presidente nagiging kandidato for VP. Nabigla lang. I think the people are still digesting that,” said Paras.

(They are not used to a president becoming a candidate for VP. They were just caught off-guard. I think the people are still digesting that.)

The political adviser thinks Manila Mayor Isko Moreno is the “number one contender” against Sara but that numbers could still change if certain politicians included in the survey end up not running for the top two positions after all. – Rappler.com