BY the time you’re reading this today, Saturday, September 26, supporters of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte must have started to mass up at the Luneta Grandstand for the “People’s Nomination” of his presidential candidacy scheduled at 4:00 p.m.
This despite Duterte’s repeated public pronouncements that he was not interested in running for the top post in the land, the latest pronouncement made early this week in Davao City where he advised the organizers of the million-signature campaign to call off the People’s Nomination scheduled for today.
This event and the many other events urging Duterte to run are led by PDP Laban where he is a member.
“Yes, dayon ‘mi, rain or shine; it doesn’t matter kung pila lang ka tao, tutal launch naman ito for a nationwide nomination, and volunteers and supporters naman ang pupunta,” (Yes, we will push through, rain or shine; the number of people does not matter because this is just the launching, anyway, of a nationwide nomination, and the volunteers and supporters are the ones who are coming), says a political officer of the PDP Laban.
Duterte’s supporters target to have at least one million of the Filipino electorate sign the Certificate of Nomination to be prepared by PDP Laban head Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III prior to the period of the filing of candidacies from October 12 to 16.
On Duterte’s “stubbornness” to heed the clamor for him to run for President, this is what his supporters have to say: “Kung gahi imong ulo, mas gahi among ulo. Usa ra ka, daghan mi. Digong, dagan na!” (If you are stubborn, we are more stubborn than you; there is just you against many of us. Run, Digong!)
The Certificate of Nomination will be posted on social media networks Facebook and Twitter, and will be published in major newspapers nationwide.
In the recent nationwide “Run Duterte Run” caravan, starting in Luzon and culminating in Davao City on August 28, organizers claim to have 13,000 vehicles participating.
As a result of such “overwhelming show support,” Duterte, in his speech before the crowd gathered at Rizal Park in Davao City, asked that he be given some time to convince his family to change their minds against his running for the presidency. BEEN THERE DONE THAT/JOSEPHINE JARON CODILLA
