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DAVAO Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who has consistently rejected the idea of running for President, is willing to face his destiny should the presidency become a moral obligation for him.

“Paeglahan ko na lang kung muabot gyud na nga panahon,” he said when asked what he would do when it becomes clear that the people really want him to lead the country.
“Paeglahan” is actually a street slang which means taking on a challenge.

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Duterte, who came in third to neophyte Sen. Grace Poe and former front runner Vice President Jejomar Binay in the recent survey on presidential preferences, said that when the numbers indicate that there is a unanimous call from the people for him to run for President, he will be compelled to accept the challenge.

Riding on his reputation as a no-nonsense mayor who transformed Davao from a “killing fields” of communist assassins in the 1980s to one of the safest cities in the world today, Duterte’s ratings have steadily climbed in the last three surveys where his name was included in the list of Presidential prospects for the first time.

He came in with 5% early this year, 12% in the second survey and 15% in the last survey of Pulse Asia, closing in on the free-falling Binay and third to Poe.

But before he would make his final decision to take on the herculean task of leading the nation, Duterte said he will visit the tomb of his departed parents and call on their spirits to guide him.

“There will be no (spiritual) retreat before I make the decision. That’s not me. I will visit the graves of my father and mother and seek their guidance. Maybe, their spirits will whisper to me and tell me which path to take,” he declared during a talk with some of his closest advisers and friends at Marco Polo Hotel in Davao City two weeks ago.

Duterte’s position on the issue of the presidency has always been consistent with his previous statements and his character as a political leader. “The presidency is destiny. If it is yours, it is yours,” he said adding that he will not make extra efforts to beg for support and financial contributions to become President. “I don’t need it. I don’t covet it but when it becomes a moral obligation, I will have to take the challenge.” (manny piñol)

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