(UPDATED) Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, former aide of President Rodrigo Duterte, on Friday, March 12, 2021, reiterated that he was not interested in running for higher office in the May 2022 national elections.
But he said he might reconsider if Duterte runs for vice president.
"Magbabago lang siguro ang isip ko kung tatakbong vice president si Pangulong Duterte," Go said.
Duterte’s six-year term as president ends in 2022. The 1987 Constitution prohibits him from seeking reelection to the same post.
Members of the ruling Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), which catapulted Duterte to the presidency in 2016, have adopted a resolution urging Duterte to run for vice president. Duterte has yet to comment on this.
The resolution, signed on March 8, was circulated on social media. On March 10, new PDP-Laban acting president Emmanuel "Manny" Pacquiao called on party members to focus more on the opportunity to serve.
"Our countrymen need us now more than ever. There will be a time for politics, but for now the lives and well-being of our countrymen should be our utmost priority," Pacquiao, a senator, said in a letter to his partymates.
Go, in his statement, said he would rather focus on fulfilling his mandate as senator and his commitment to serve, especially amid the challenges caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) crisis.
“Ang focus ko, mula noon hanggang ngayon, ay ang magserbisyo sa kapwa kong Pilipino. Please count me out sa usaping pulitika sa 2022,” he said in a statement.
Go’s term as senator will end in 2025 yet.
In a speech in Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental on March 11, President Rodrigo Duterte announced that Go wants to run for president.
Go said the President was just joking.
"I am very grateful for the trust given to me by the President. Salamat po sa tiwala pero alam naman po ng Pangulo na hindi talaga ako interesado. Biro lang ng Pangulo iyon,” Go said in a message to reporters on March 11.
Asked for his take on reports that the PDP-Laban was considering him and Senator Manny Pacquiao as possible standard bearer in 2022, Go said these speculations could not be avoided.
But he said he would rather be last on the list of probable candidates.
“Ngunit uulitin ko, please count me out muna. Kung maaari ako na po 'yung pinakahuli sa listahan ng kinokonsidera ninyo sa pinagpipilian. Kahit huli na po ako dahil hindi po ako interesado to the point of saying na please count me out po muna diyan sa usapang pulitika,” he said.
When asked on the possibility of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio deciding to run for president, Go said he will support her in the same way that he supports her father. Duterte-Carpio is the President’s eldest daughter. (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / PR)