Duterte to grace HNP’s miting de avance in Davao City, say spox

President Rodrigo Duterte will attend the miting de avance of the administration slate Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) led by his daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, on May 9 in his hometown of Davao City.

The President’s attendance was announced by Jefry Tupas, the HNP’s Media Bureau Coordinator, on Thursday morning.

During HNP’s last campaign stop in Camiguin last week, Sara, who serves as HNP’s campaign manager, said that she has invited her father to be the guest of honor and speaker for the HNP’s final campaign rally.

The President and HNP have different set of Senate slate, but Sara has said that it was not a problem because she respects his father’s choices.

Sara, however, was aware that her father could make comments not in line with the HNP slate.

“Well, may plano kami na sabihan si President na mag-behave sa mga comment niya kasi hindi pareho ang slate namin. But we still want him to be there, kasi Davao City, it his city and he is the President,” Sara said.

The HNP Senate slate is composed of 13 bets or more than the 12 Senate seats at stake.

The 13 HNP Senate bets include:

• Senator Cynthia Villar
• Senator Sonny Angara
• Senator JV Ejercito
• former Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go
• Taguig Representative Pia Cayetano
• former Philippine National Police chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa
• former Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.
• Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos
• former Presidential Adviser for Political Affairs Francis Tolentino
• former Senator Jinggoy Estrada
• Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III
• Maguindanao Representative Zajid Mangudadatu
• former journalist Jiggy Manicad

Of the 13, only Villar, Angara, Ejercito, Marcos, Cayetano, and five members of the President’s PDP-Laban namely Mangudadatu, Dela Rosa, Go, Pimentel and Tolentino are backed by President Duterte aside from folk singer Freddie Aguilar. — Llanesca T. Panti/RSJ, GMA News