MANILA — Former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo may have egged her political ally, former president Rodrigo Duterte, to once again dip his fingers in politics after he stepped down from office last June 30, 2022.
But former executive secretary Salvador Medialdea said Duterte has not contemplated a political comeback after spending 40 years of his life in politics.
“Nothing, he has no plans for politics,” Medialdea, who was Duterte’s long-time legal counsel, said in Filipino.
Sen. Bong Go said that Arroyo encouraged Duterte to go back to politics.
“I’ll talk to my family about it,” Duterte was reported to have quipped after Arroyo asked him to get back to politics during a dinner over the weekend in Manila that was also attended by Go, former Senate president Vicente Sotto III and Medialdea.
But according to Medialdea, who has remained close to Duterte, he doubts if the former president will run again, not even for senator in 2025 as has lately been talked about.
Duterte has lately taken the time to do the things which he did not get to do when he was president.
“I’ve been catching up with my sleep lately and I ride my big bike around or outside the city,” Duterte said.
He also lamented that old age, now that he is 78, has been catching up with him so that it limits his movements. “It is old age. Old age catches up with me.”
Meeting
Go said Arroyo, through her staff, invited Duterte who was in Manila at the time to an informal meeting on Saturday night.
“In the said meeting, former president Arroyo also convinced former president Duterte to become active in politics again,” Go said.
Pictures of the meeting among Arroyo, Duterte, Sotto, Medialdea and Go were sent to reporters.
Go described the meeting as “a simple greeting and happy meeting happened with the leaders who served the people in different positions or capacities during the previous administrations. They looked back on the times they spent together in government.”
The senator said the meeting coincided with Duterte’s medical appointment in Manila. “Tatay Digong and I happened to be together then after I accompanied him to his medical check-up at the hospital, as I used to do with him,” said Go, who served as special assistant to the president during Duterte’s term as mayor and president.
“And since former president Duterte rarely goes to Manila these days, with the help of former executive secretary Salvador Medialdea, former Senate president Tito Sotto also wanted to personally say hello to his friend Duterte,” Go added. (philstar)
