Metro Manila, Philippines – Vice President Sara Duterte said she “recruited” last year her running mate for the 2028 elections, shaping up some details about her early pronouncement for a presidential bid.
“May ni-recruit ako, hanggang diyan lang ang sasabihin ko. Ni-recruit ko siya last year pa,” she told SMNI, a media company associated with televangelist Apollo Quiboloy, a known Duterte ally, on Saturday, Feb. 21.
“Kaso wag muna natin ‘yan pag-usapan. Protektahan natin ‘yong tao hanggang sa mapagdesisyon siya sa kung anong gagawin niya sa karera niya,” she said during the televised interview.
[Translation: I have recruited a running mate, that’s all that I can say for now. I recruited that person last year. But let’s not discuss that. Let’s protect the person until they make the decision for their career.]
Sen. Robin Padilla has floated Sen. Imee Marcos as Duterte’s potential running mate, but clarified this was not formally discussed yet within the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP), the party of Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte.
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On Sunday, Padilla reiterated that he has no intention to run as vice president, but previously told reporters he is open to that possibility if the Duterte patriarch asks him to.
Duterte did not entertain questions when she made the announcement on Feb. 18 at the Office of the Vice President.
The vice president previously said she will bare her plans for the 2028 national elections by December 2026.
During the interview, Duterte said she saw no reason to delay it as she already faced criticisms from her political opponents.
“One day, noong Christmas break, naisip ko bigay ko sa mga tao ‘yong gusto nila para sila maging masaya,” she said, explaining that she felt the ‘desperation’ from her supporters to run for president.
[Translation: One day, during the Christmas break, I thought about giving the people what they want to make them happy.]
Political analysts said the early declaration could influence how lawmakers will position themselves in tackling Duterte’s impeachment.
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Asked about this insight, Duterte told SMNI she “has no power” to scare those allied with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as she maintained that the impeachment against her was a “political scapegoating” for the shortcomings of the administration.
Duterte survived her impeachment trial last year after the Supreme Court declared the articles of impeachment as unconstitutional for violating the one-year bar rule.
The four fresh impeachment complaints, mainly centered on her alleged misuse of public funds, have yet to be referred to the House justice committee.
‘Presidency has no gender’
Duterte believes that being a president is not tied with sex and gender, but acknowledged those who may have that kind of belief, including his father.
In 2021, then-President Duterte, known to issue sexist remarks, said he told her daughter that the presidency is not fit for the emotional set-up of a woman to dismiss speculations the younger Duterte will succeed the presidency.
“Para sa akin, ‘yong gender, wala ‘yan, nasa kalooban ng tao at kakayahan ng tao,” she said.
[Translation: For me, gender has nothing to do with the presidency. It’s with the will and ability of a person.]
The vice president said the older Duterte, detained at The Hague, Netherlands for his crimes against humanity case, learned of her 2028 plans only on Friday.
She said only her husband, Manases Carpio, her children, and the scriptwriter knew of the announcement for her presidential bid.
Her mother, Elizabeth Zimmerman, was informed about the plan but was not aware of the early declaration.
The Uniteam alliance between Marcos and Duterte has significantly deteriorated since 2024 due to foreign policy issues, among other reasons.
