Davao City (CNN Philippines) — Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte appealed to his supporters to stop all their efforts in convincing him to run for president in 2016 saying that not even a sign from God nor a million people showing up at Quirino Grandstand could make him change his mind.
In a hastily called news conference Monday evening (September 21), Duterte said that he did not want people to assume that he was just playing coy and that he was just waiting for more donors and more supporters before he made his declaration.
“There’s a planned assembly… a few hundred people… they want to dramatize their request for me to run for president,” he said.
“Huwag nila gawin sana yan kasi it could complicate matters. Baka sabihin ng tao atras-abante ako. I do not want any part of that exercise.”
[Translation: “I hope they won’t do that because it could complicate matters. People might say that I’m indecisive, going forward and then backwards. I do not want any part of that exercise.”]
Accompanying Duterte were supporters like Maribojoc Mayor Leoncio Evasco, former North Cotabato Gov. Emmanuel Piñol, spokesman Peter Laviña, former Bayan Muna Rep. Joel Virador and former Bayan Muna Secretary General Ariel Casilao.
Duterte said that no amount of prodding, rallies, or signature campaigns could change his mind. He said that he planned to retire from politics by 2016 if ever former Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio would accept his suggestion for her to run for mayor.
If his daughter would refuse to run, Duterte said he would be compelled to run for reelection.
The mayor’s reasons for refusing to run for president were basically the same as his previous statement — lack of funding, old age, various illnesses bothering him, and his family’s sentiments.
Duterte added though that not even him could put an end to all the problems of the country. He said that six years would not be enough to address all the problems that had been besetting the country for decades now.
“No president can solve this grinding poverty of our nation. No president-elect can ever, ever solve the problem,” he said.
“If you give six years, it’s not enough. Then I would fail. Six years is not enough. Six years, I do not have energy, or any ordinary person [even if] able bodied.”
Despite his latest appeal, Duterte supporters were still bent on convincing the mayor to run for president.
On Tuesday (September 22), members of the Hugpong Federal Movement will go to the Commission on Elections office here in Davao City to get copies of the certificate of candidacy which they would file on behalf of the mayor.
Laviña said that that such an activity would not be only happening in Davao City but in all other areas with diehard Duterte supporters.
Duterte pointed out, however, that people couldn’t file a certificate of candidacy for presidency on his behalf especially without his authorization.
