Sara-Bebot ‘squabble’ won’t affect admin’s priority measures: Palace

FILE: Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. ( YANCY LIM/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO)

MANILA — The rift between Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and House Speaker Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez will not affect the priority measures of the Duterte administration, Malacañang assured Saturday.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque made this pronouncement after the issue between the two surfaced, where Alvarez allegedly called the presidential daughter a member of the “opposition” after she formed her regional political party.

“No. Speaker is our ally,” Roque said in response to whether the squabble between Duterte-Carpio and Alvarez would affect the passage of the current administration’s priority measures.

Roque, however, refused to comment on their argument noting that he could only speak for the President.

Duterte-Carpio and four governors of Davao earlier established a new political party called Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP, or Alliance for Change), which has the President’s blessing.

Duterte and Alvarez are chairman and secretary general of the country’s ruling political party Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP Laban), respectively.

The Davao City Mayor said she has specifically informed the President that she would not be joining the PDP Laban.

“I would like everyone to know, including the Speaker of the House, that the unity I forged with the four Governors of Region 11 has the blessing of President Rodrigo Duterte,” Duterte-Carpio said.

“Even the use of the word Hugpong as the name of our regional party Hugpong ng Pagbabago has the President’s approval,” she added.

Alvarez, for his part, denied that he called Duterte-Carpio a member of the opposition, saying she must have been fed with the wrong information.

“Panong magiging part of the opposition, part ng administration ‘yan (How can she be part of the opposition when she’s part of the administration)?” Alvarez said.

“Baka meron lang nagsabi ng mali siguro. Okay lang yun (Perhaps somebody must have said something wrong. It’s okay),” he added.