Davao City (CNN Philippines) — Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte once again denied plans of running for president in the 2016 elections, saying the presidency is an unforgiving position.
In a statement made over his weekly TV program Sunday (June 7), Duterte said all he wants to do right now is travel the world and enjoy the remaining years of his life.
He added the presidency is almost like an assurance that a person will go to prison after his term, referring to former Presidents Joseph Estrada and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who were jailed due to plunder charges, which is a non-bailable offense in the Philippines.
Duterte likewise denied that he was keen on getting Batangas Gov. Vilma Santons as his running mate because he is not gunning for the top position.
North Cotabato Gov. Emmanuel Piñol earlier bared that during a recent trip to Davao with the feisty mayor, Duterte spoke about the possibiity of running for office in 2016 and who his dream running mate would be.
He said it took Duterte sometime to answer the question but when he did, he candidly replied, “It can’t be Grace Poe because I think she has decided to run for President. Vilma Santos would be a good choice.”
It was also during the said trip that Duterte intimated his cabinet ‘wish list,’ which include the following:
former Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro (Defense)
former Agriculture Secretary Carlos “Sonny” Dominguez III (Finance)
former Interior Secretary Rafael Alunan III (Interior and Local Government)
lawyer Vitaliano Aguirre (Justice)
Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo (Social Welfare)
