MANILA (UPDATE) — President Rodrigo Duterte's spokesman on Thursday urged the public to give "breathing space" to the leader and his daughter over what he says is "a family matter" related to the 2022 national elections.

"This is a family matter. I would hope that the rest of the nation give the father and the daughter breathing space to discuss and agree on future course of action," Presidential spokesman Harry Roque told a news briefing.

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Duterte, who is not eligible for reelection, confirmed Tuesday night his plan to seek the country's second-highest office after stepping down next year. But, according to his spokesman, he will not push through if his daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, who belongs to another political party, will join the presidential race.

In a statement on Wednesday where she confirmed her father's 2022 plans, supposedly with Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go as his running mate under PDP-Laban, Duterte-Carpio revealed she was also presented with two options: "one note explained why I should endorse the Go-Duterte tandem, and the other suggested that I take in Senator Go as my Vice President."

"I strongly suggest to the President and Senator Go to own up publicly their decision to run as a tandem... I respectfully advise them to stop talking about me and make me the reason for them running or not running," said the younger Duterte, who chairs the regional Hugpong ng Pagbabago political party and is also being urged by some sectors to be her father's successor.

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'DUTERTE DECIDED FOR NOW TO SEEK VP POST'

During his briefing Thursday, Roque said Duterte, "as of 5:46" p.m. of Wednesday, "will run as vice president" next year as "things are clear now" following his daughter's statement.

"I think his perception is that Mayor Sara Duterte will not run for elections," said Roque.

"The President’s stand remains: Delicadeza dictates that only one Duterte will run. So, since only one Duterte will run, and in his perception Mayor Sara will not run, then he can run for vice president," he explained.

Video courtesy of PTV

But Duterte, now 76, may also abandon his vice presidential plans if House Majority Floor Leader Martin Romualdez seeks the post, said Roque.

He noted the President earlier promised to support the lawmaker if he ran for the No. 2 job.

“He (Duterte) is a man of his word,” Roque said of Duterte.

“I believe if Congressman Romualdez will run, he will not run for vice president.”

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Roque said "nothing is final until October" when the Commission on Elections opens the filing of candidacy for those interested to run in the 2022 national elections.

Until then, the President and her daughter should be given "space to discuss" about their family's plans, he said.

FAMILY AFFAIR

Asked how the 2022 plans of the Dutertes could be a family matter when it concerns the two highest electoral posts in the country, Roque said, "Because the decision to run or not run is still a personal decision, it is a constitutional right of citizens."

"And as far as the President’s sense of delicadeza is concerned, only one Duterte can run, and that is the context by which I say let the father and daughter deal with the issues," added the official.

Meanwhile, Go denied he and Duterte-Carpio have issues against each other, saying, "Kung anong pagmamahal ko sa tatay ganun din ang pagmamahal ko sa mga anak."

(I love the children as much as I love their father.)

"Nangako ako sa kanya na sasamahan ko siya habangbuhay. At isa sa mga ipinagbilin niya sa akin ay huwag ko pababayaan ang mga anak niya kung wala na siya sa mundong ito," the neophyte lawmaker said, referring to Duterte.

(I promised him that I will be with him until the end of our lives. And he had told me to take care of his children when he's gone.)

BONG GO'S DECISION

Roque said Duterte is leaving it up to Go "to make up his mind, whether or not he will run for the position of president."

In his recent statements until Thursday, Go, who served as Duterte's aide since the late 1990s and won as senator in 2019 with Duterte-Carpio's endorsement, said he remains not interested in running for president next year. His faction in PDP-Laban already said he will be nominated as their standard bearer in 2022.

"Ukol naman sa endorsement ng PDP-Laban, nagpapasalamat ako sa tiwala ng aking mga kapartido for considering me and President Rodrigo Duterte as their possible standard bearers in the 2022 elections. Ngunit hindi pa rin nagbabago ang isip ko. Hindi talaga ako interesado," said the senator whose term is still until 2025.

(As regards the endorsement of PDP-Laban, I thank my party mates for their trust and considering me and President Rodrigo Duterte as their possible standard bearers in the 2022 elections. But my mind still has not changed. I am not really interested.)

The PDP-Laban now has two factions as its officers and members squabble over the party's official bets in next year's elections. One group, led by Energy Sec. Alfonso Cusi and backed by party chair Duterte, are endorsing the Go-Duterte tandem, while hose not in favor are led by Senators Manny Pacquiao and Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III, son of party founder the late Sen. Nene Pimentel.

PDP-Laban officer Ron Munsayac, who is allied with the Pacquiao wing, had said that they have party mates who see the Go-Duterte tandem as a a smokescreen for a Duterte-Carpio presidency.

Munsayac said Go will eventually back out of the presidential race and give the whole party machinery to Duterte-Carpio, who in turn, will leave out other PDP-Laban candidates.

Cusi described the scenario as "purely speculation, a figment of their imagination," saying, " We are working for the party’s interest."

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"I am not a "Last Two Minutes" person. I think, I organize, and I implement accordingly. In the meantime, I refuse to be a political punching bag for a party I complete disarray," Duterte-Carpio said in her statement on Wednesday.

Addressing Pimentel and Munsayac, she said, "Do not blame me for the sitcom that your party has been reduced to."

POWER PLAY?

Other critics also believe Duterte could be making a play for retaining power by taking over as president under a scenario in which Go wins and then resigns, enabling Duterte to shield himself from possible legal actions when he leaves office.

"This is really part of the scheme of the Duterte clique to extend not only influence but control of government," said opposition congressman Carlos Zarate.

"In choosing his successor, President Duterte is grappling with an unstated urgent concern: who can be best trusted to protect and insulate him from almost certain criminal suits once he is out of power," think tank Center for People Empowerment Governance said.

An International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor wants Duterte's narcotics war investigated for alleged crimes against humanity and thousands of killings.

Akbayan, meanwhile, challenged Duterte-Carpio "to match her bravado with actions."

"If she doesn't want her name dragged in her father's mad attempt to stay in power, then she should abandon her dynastic plan to seek the presidency. Anything less than this is complicity and hollow theatrics," the group said in a statement.

Roque said he will not react anymore to these observations, saying the opinion of the opposition has nothing to do with the decision of Duterte.

He said Duterte wants to continue "unfinished business" with corruption and illegal drugs, among others.

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— With a report from Reuters