SAN PEDRO CITY, Laguna—It was an awkward moment on stage for running mates Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano when a Christian pastor in a prayer openly campaigned for Sen. Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. for vice president.

Coming from Mindoro island, Duterte, presidential candidate of the Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), arrived with vice presidential running mate Cayetano at a campaign rally here on Friday night.

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The event, however, which drew at least 30,000 people, had been organized by the Alyansang Duterte-Bongbong (Aldub), a group supporting a Duterte-Marcos tandem.

At the rally grounds in La Marea subdivision here, booths selling Duterte-Marcos T-shirts had been set up. Streamers endorsing the team-up were visible from the subdivision entrance.

The rally started just after 5 p.m. but Duterte and Cayetano arrived at the venue at 8 p.m., their motorcade around the city slowed by heavy traffic.

Apologetic

The five-hour program was nearing its end when the emcee called on Bishop Jess Ramos, a Pentecostal Church pastor, for the closing prayer. On stage were Duterte and Cayetano, surrounded by some of their candidates for senator and for local positions, who had all delivered their stump speeches.

Before he began his prayer, Ramos turned apologetically to Cayetano, who remained stoic.

“Alam mo naman, nandito tayo para kay Bongbong. I hope, sana puwede maging dalawang bise presidente (You know that we here support Bongbong. I wish we could have two vice presidents),” Ramos said.

“Kaya ipapanalangin po natin si Mayor (Duterte) ang susunod na pangulo ng ating bansa at kasama po sa ating panalangin ang susunod na pangalawang pangulo ng Pilipinas, Bongbong Marcos. Patawad po (So let us all pray that the mayor will be the next president of our country and we also pray that the next vice president will be Bongbong Marcos. Forgive me),” he said turning to Cayetano.

The tandem of Duterte and Marcos, who are both leading preelection surveys, is being pushed, especially in the Ilocos region, the Marcoses’ bailiwick.

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During the vice presidential debate last week, Marcos recounted how Duterte promised to step down and turn over the presidency to him should the mayor fail to curb criminality in six months.

Just kidding

Cayetano downplayed this by saying that Duterte made the promise in jest.

In his speech here, Duterte touted Cayetano, even as he acknowledged Aldub for organizing the event.

“I must explain, itong affair na ito sponsored by Aldub. Ang dinadala nyan Duterte-Marcos, so bahala na kayo. Kasi nakakahiya naman(They’re supporting Duterte-Marcos so it’s up to you. It’s a bit embarrassing),” Duterte said.

“(But) if you vote for me, give me a vice president I can work with. Kung mag-elect kayo ng bise, yung kaibigan ko. Siguruduhin mo lang, kasi walang gagawin … (If you elect a vice, make sure he is a friend of mine otherwise he won’t work), Duterte said

Aiming to appease his running mate, he resorted to his trademark tough talk as he “promised” the presidency to Cayetano.

‘I’ll kill president’

“Alan is a very decent man … Kay Alan, kung ikaw manalo at ako matalo, bigyan mo lang ako six months patayin ko presidente (Alan, if you win and I lose, give me six months and I will kill the president),” Duterte said, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Reached by phone on Saturday, Aldub coconvenor Reuben Lista said they had warned Cayetano’s team that the crowd, among them Christian pastors, was supporting the Duterte-Marcos tandem, to avoid what turned out to be an awkward moment for the senator.

“We recommended to the advance team (of Cayetano that he might want to skip the event). San Pedro is Marcos country. 90 percent (of the people) and most of the local candidates are for Marcos,” Lista said.

But he said they graciously welcomed Cayetano and his supporters and allowed them to put up campaign materials at the rally.

“We told the supporters not to heckle (Cayetano). We would not have allowed him to be disrespected because we did not want to show disrespect to our president (Duterte),” he said.

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