Philippines’ Duterte accepts vice-presidential nomination for 2022 as constitution blocks serving second term

Incumbent leader of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte has accepted his party’s nomination to run for the role of vice president in 2022, as the constitution restricts him from serving a second term.

On Wednesday, Duterte announced his bid for vice president in next year’s elections during a national convention of his party and electoral candidates. Duterte thanked his party for choosing him, and expressed he would “like to continue serving my countrymates and leading the nation to greater progress.”

Under the constitution of the Philippines, presidents are barred from holding a second term. However, opponents have argued that a vice-presidential role, albeit largely ceremonial, would allow Duterte to still have a tight hold on power.

Sara Duterte-Carpio, the leader’s daughter and mayor of Davao City, might become Duterte’s successor as the country’s leader. However, Duterte also stated that he will pursue the vice presidency if his daughter does not run for president. She has not yet stated whether she will run before the October deadline.

But she listed several politicians last week, including the incumbent president’s long-term aide Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, that had offered to run with her in 2022.

In a letter made public at the end of August, Go rejected the PDP-Laban party’s nomination for the election, despite originally saying he would run for president if Duterte was his running mate. Instead, he vowed to devote his time to fighting the pandemic and urged people to support pro-Duterte candidates.

Duterte’s stint in office featured a brutal crackdown on drugs in the Philippines. According to figures from Amnesty International, over 7,000 people were killed in the Southeast Asian country in the first six months after Duterte came into power in June 2016 by police and armed attackers, as the president instructed his countrymen to kill suspected dealers or users as part of their “duty”.

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