DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 26 February)—Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte took a swipe at President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s cousin, House Speaker Martin Romualdez, saying the speaker is “isog” (brave) of his political moves only because his cousin is the incumbent president.
Davao City Mayor Sebastian ‘Baste’ Duterte during the Hakbang ng Maisug Leaders Forum in Davao City in January. MindaNews file photo by MANMAN DEJETO
“Isog lang ka kay speaker ka karon, speaker lang ka kay tungod ang ig-agaw nimo presidente karon, mao na! (You are brave only because you are the current [House] speaker, you are the speaker because your cousin is the president, that’s it!)” the city mayor exclaimed during the “Hakbang ng Maisug” prayer rally in Cebu City on Sunday streamed online.
Baste, son of former president Rodrigo Duterte, had strongly told Marcos Jr.
to resign “if you don’t have love nor aspirations for your country” during the same named campaign held in Davao City last January 28.
In the Cebu rally, he reiterated his accusation that Romualdez led the people’s initiative (PI) that urged the people to rally behind the move to amend the Constitution supposedly to change only economic provisions, but intended to extend the term of the President.
The proposed revision to Article 17, Section 1 as contained in the signatory forms read: “Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution may be proposed by (1) The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members, voting jointly at the call of the Senate President or the House of the Representatives.”
Currently, Section 1 provides: Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution may be proposed by (1) The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members; or (2) A constitutional convention.
“Usa ka tuig pa lang, unya ang concern sa kining administration karon, kung unsaon pagpadugay sa ilahang termino through charter change (They’ve been in power for just one year, and this administration’s concern is how to extend their terms through charter change,)” Duterte said.
“Sige ilara pa mi! Sige ilara pa mi! Ay ’sus, walay uwaw (Deceive us more!
Deceive us more! Shameless!),” he added.
The city mayor even said he will “take a P1,500 bet” that the “brave” Romualdez will put his name and face through relief aid again, calling the speaker “baga’g nawong” (thick faced).
Pictures of relief aid for the Masara landslide victim—of items contained in white sacks and bottled water, both with the name of the speaker and the logo of the House of Representatives—posted on social media earlier this month have gone viral, with more than 4,000 reactions and shared over 6,300 times as of this writing.
Romualdez, in a press statement last month, said his participation in the people’s initiative is “purely advisory” and “no vote-buying happened.”
“I firmly deny any allegations of involvement in unlawful activities such as vote-buying related to this or any other initiative. Such practices are against my principles and the ethical standards of our government,” Romualdez said.
However, during the Senate’s probe on the PI campaign last January 30, the People’s Initiative for Modernization and Reform Action (PIRMA) group said they had “coordinated” with Romualdez and with some congressmen “in getting 3% signatures per congressional district.”
The “Hakbang ng Maisug” prayer rally in Cebu City also featured similar guests as its Davao City version—former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, former executive secretary Vic Rodriguez, Davao City Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte (1st Dist.), former Biliran Rep. Glenn Chong, television host Willie Revillame, and former president Duterte.
(Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
