11th November, 2021
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and President Rodrigo Duterte’s daughter has sent tongues wagging again in the Philippines after she resigned from her regional party, Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP).
HNP Secretary-General Anthony del Rosario said Duterte-Carpio tendered her handwritten resignation letter at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday.
“It is with profound sadness that I hereby tender my resignation from our beloved party. My support will always be with you and I will always be grateful for all the things you have taught me,” Duterte-Carpio wrote in her letter.
Del Rosario said the party wishes the Davao City mayor “all the best in her future plans.”
“While we are saddened by her resignation, we however wish her all the best in her future plans. Godspeed po Mayor Sara. In our hearts, you will always be our Chairperson,” he said in a statement.
Duterte-Carpio’s latest move is making many ponder on her political plans in 2022, reports inquirer.net.
Despite calls for her to run for president, she initially said she would seek reelection as Davao City mayor in the 2022 elections.
She even filed her certificate of candidacy (COC) for the post during the filing period in early October.
However, in a move that did not shock so many, Duterte-Carpio withdrew her mayoral bid, days before the filing for substitution of candidates ends on Nov. 15.
This makes the option to run for a national post open.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) earlier said the Davao City mayor can run for a national post in the 2022 elections but not under the HNP.
Duterte-Carpio must join a national party so she could qualify as a substitute candidate for whoever filed a COC for a national post.
She has long been suspected to eventually substitute Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who filed his COC for president under President Rodrigo Duterte’s, her father, party PDP-Laban.