Philippines: Rodrigo Duterte's daughter to run for vice president in 2022 elections

The daughter of Filipino president Rodrigo Duterte, Sara, has registered her candidacy for the post of vice-president in next year’s elections. Notably, earlier this week, Sara pulled out her bid as Davao City mayor and replaced the vice-presidential candidate of her political party.

The Pacific archipelago is set to hold its Presidential elections starting 9 May next year. The Filipino constitution forbids the president to run for a second term, and Rodrigo Duterte had previously announced he would be retiring from politics. Notably, in the Philippines, the president and vice-president are chosen discreetly and can even belong to different political parties. However, in most cases, they end up in hostilities.

Sara had initially applied for the Presidential post as her Lakas Kampi CMD party wanted her to succeed Duterte. At present, Sara Duterte Carpio is serving as the mayor of the archipelago’s third-largest city Davao. Meanwhile, in the same interview, Rodrigo Duterte revealed that he does not talk politics with his daughter. "Ah, no, actually we don't talk about politics, ever since we never talk about politics. I would say that it is for the better," Duterte was quoted as saying by ABS-CBN. 

Son of former dictator to compete for President 

Last month, the son of the country's former dictator Ferdinand Marcos announced that he will run for the presidential post in next year’s elections. In an elaborate video message on Facebook, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said that he would bring “unifying leadership” to the country. “Let us bring Filipinos back to one another in service of our country, facing the crisis and the challenges of the future together,” he added as he disclosed his intention to be the country’s next leader. 

Since the polls were first announced, the archipelagic nation has witnessed a dramatic turn of events including incumbent president Rodrigo Dutretre quitting politics. Notably, Ferdinand is an ally of Dutretre and has previously advocated his proposal to award the death penalty to drug traffickers. Popularly known as ‘Bongbong’, the 64-year-old is the only son of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr, who seized power in 1972 and continued to rule for two decades. 

(Image: AP)