Duterte: Bong Go wants to be president

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said his former longe-time aide and now Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” really wants to become president.

In a speech during the groundbreaking ceremonies of the new Port Operations Building in the Port of Dumaguete in Negros Oriental, Duterte said that Go had asked him to make the announcement.

“Ug kani si Bong ba (and Bong), padulong mi ngari ingon siya, ‘Hangyua ang mga tao, ingna sila na gusto ko mudagan pagka-Presidente (When we were on our way here, he said, ‘Please talk to the people, tell them that I want to run for president’),” Duterte said.

This is not the first time Duterte hinted that his former special assistant could probably run for the highest office in government.

Duterte, in a speech delivered in Cagayan de Oro City on March 5, teased Go about a possible presidential run, calling the senator “president.”

The President said Go has been with him for 21 years.

“He’s very hardworking. If there’s a fire somewhere, he’ll go there wherever it may be. Just look at his endless flights. afternoon when I fly back to Manila, he’d be there too,” he said.

The senator, however, had said that he was not gunning for a higher position in next year’s polls as he would rather focus first on the coronavirus pandemic.

“I am very grateful for the trust given to me by the President. Salamat po sa tiwala pero hindi po ako interesado (Thank you for the trust but I am not interested),” Go said.