Duterte asks Marcos to uphold fairness ahead of Eleksyon 2025

Former president Rodrigo Duterte has appealed to his successor, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., to exercise fairness as voters head to the polls in May.

At the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino's national coordination meeting in Davao City on Thursday, Duterte said he was hopeful that Marcos would give everyone an equal chance in the midterm elections.

“This coming election, I hope that the president, kung marinig niya ako, bigyan niya tayo ng, sabi ko nga a fair shake, patas lang ang laban. Wala lang…he will not allow, kagaya ko noon, nag prangka-prangka ako sa mga tao, tayo na huwag kayong pumasok sa takutan, huwag kayo sa violence,'' Duterte said in a report on ''24 Oras'' on Friday.

(This coming election, I hope that the president, if he hears me, will give everyone a fair shake, a fair game. He will not allow, just as I openly advised the people not to use fear, intimidation, or violence when I was president.)

Both Duterte and Marcos have endorsed candidates running for the Senate, with Marcos aiming to win all 12 of the available seats.

Since early last year, Duterte and Marcos have been at odds over a number of issues, ranging from the attempt to amend the 1987 Constitution through a people's initiative and allegations that the president is a drug user to the alleged missing amounts in the 2025 national budget.

Vice President Sara Duterte, the daughter of the former leader, also left the administration in the middle of 2024 as Marcos' supporters in the House of Representatives launched an inquiry into her alleged misuse of public funds.

Three impeachment complaints have been filed against the vice president, but Marcos stated that he would not back such a process because it would not allegedly improve the lives of Filipinos. — VBL, GMA Integrated News

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