Paolo Duterte resigns as vice mayor of Davao City, but will daddy accept it?
In a move that shocked the national political world, presidential son Paolo Duterte announced this Christmas Day that he is resigning as Vice Mayor of Davao City. In a statement read during a special session of the Davao City council, the younger Duterte cited delicadeza and the need for him to “protect (his) honor and that of (his) children.”
It has been a turbulent year for “Pulong,” mainly because he was implicated in the smuggling to the Philippines of P6.4 billion worth of shabu from China. Testifying before a Senate hearing last August, licensed Bureau of Customs (BOC) broker Mark Taguba said that Duterte and the so-called “Davao Group” is involved in multi-million smuggling operations within the BOC. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, meanwhile, accused the President’s eldest son of being part of a Chinese drug triad.
Duterte, for his part, strongly denied all the allegations when he appeared before the Senate while Taguba eventually recanted his claims. The matter is now being investigated by the Office of the Ombudsman. Just last week, he engaged in an embarrassing word war against his eldest daughter Isabelle via social media.
As the top vote-getter among the councilors elected during the 2016 local elections, Councilor Mabel Acosta of Davao City’s first district will become the Vice Mayor. However, the resignation of “Polong” will only be effective if and when it is accepted by his father, President Rodrigo Duterte.
According to section 82 of Republic Act 7610 or the Local Government Code, the sitting President will have to accept the resignation of governors, vice-governors, and mayors and vice-mayors of highly urbanized cities and independent component cities.
The resignation is deemed accepted if no action has been made 15 working days after receiving the concerned party’s resignation letter. Will the father accept his son’s resignation? If yes, then it can quite possibly be a good public relations move for the family because it will allow them to tell the public that they are willing to make personal sacrifices although in reality, they are not losing any actual power. It must be noted that “Polong” had previously stated that he intends to retire from politics by 2019.
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