DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 4 October) – Three days after filing her certificate of candidacy (COC) for re-election, Mayor Sara Duterte announced on Monday that she will no longer pursue her three-day medical leave to Singapore scheduled from October 5 to 8.
Duterte told Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR 87.5) that one of her companions for the Singapore trip tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) based on the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result conducted Monday.
“It’s canceled because one of my companions for this trip is COVID-19 positive. We will not be allowed to enter Singapore since one of the passengers tested positive when we took the RT-PCR test this morning,” she said.
Mayor Duterte filed her COC at the Commission on Elections office in Magsaysay Park on Sunday, an hour after her father, President Rodrigo R. Duterte, announced “his retirement from politics.” President Duterte, whose term will end on June 30, 2022, earlier accepted the nomination to run as vice president.
The President’s long-time aide, Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go, who earlier announced that “he was not interested in running for a higher position,” had filed his COC for vice president.
On September 9, the mayor said she would not run for any national position after President Duterte announced he would be the running-mate of Go, who is the presidential nominee of the Cusi-led Partido Demoktratiko Pilipino – Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban).
The mayor said she and her father previously agreed that only one of them will run for a national position in 2022.
Vice Mayor Sebastian Duterte and Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte filed their COCs for reelection on Sunday morning.
Mayor Duterte reminded her supporters, who have been urging her to run for president despite her filing of COC for mayor, to avoid mass gathering to prevent contracting the highly infectious COVID-19.
“This is a reminder to all, not only for supporters of candidates. For whatever purpose, do not gather because that’s usually the cause of contagion. We emphasize – even in the offices, workplaces, churches, markets and vaccination sites – the reminder to always practice social distancing,” she said.
She said even as the city shifted to the regular General Community Quarantine (GCQ) from GCQ with restrictions, people should go out only for the purpose of work and buying food and medicines. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)