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PDP-Laban on fielding Bato for president: He's the one who's available

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<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1796862" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>MANILA -- Sen. Ronald &quot;Bato&quot; Dela Rosa is the presidential candidate of the PDP-Laban wing backed by President Rodrigo Duterte for now, Secretary-General Melvin Matibag said.“Itaga mo na sa bato na si Senator Bato na ang kandidato nating presidente ng PDP-Laban. But, just the same I’m not saying, ngayon sabi ko itaga mo lang sa bato, from today until November 15, wag mo muna ibaon yung taga sa bato,” he said on ANC’s “Headstart.”Matibag made the statement when asked to comment on a remark Dela Rosa made when he filed his certificate of candidacy just before the 5 pm deadline set by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Friday.Asked about speculations that Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio would later run for president in his place, Dela Rosa said, &quot;E &#x27;di mas maganda.&quot;<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/08/21/bato-dela-rosa-is-running-for-president">&#x27;Bato&#x27; running for president, says &#x27;better&#x27; if Sara Duterte replaces him</a></li></ul>(That will be better.) &quot;Pero this is a party decision, this is not my personal decision kasi kung ako lang masusunod, kung patatakbuhin nila ako, tatakbo pa rin ako,&quot; he quickly added.Matibag acknowledged that the chances of Duterte-Carpio now being their party’s presidential bet are now slim.“We always respect the decision of Mayor Sara Duterte. And parang I read from a newspaper yesterday that the spokesperson, si mayor from Cebu, saying that Mayor Sara will not join PDP, in present and in the future so kung hindi siya sasali ng PDP, it’s already impossible na mag-substitute because [for] substitution, you should be a member of the party.”(We always respect the decision of Mayor Sara Duterte. And I think I read from a newspaper yesterday, the spokesperson, a mayor from Cebu, has said that she will not join PDP at present or in the future. So if she won’t join PDP, it’s already impossible for her to substitute for Dela Rosa, because to be a substitute, you have to be a member of the party.)Duterte-Carpio herself said, a few hours before last Friday’s deadline, said that she will not seek the highest office in the land.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href=" https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/08/21/sara-duterte-douses-rumors-shes-filing-candidacy-for-president">No last-minute filing? Sara reiterates she&#x27;s not running for president</a></li></ul>Matibag stressed, however that PDP-Laban is ready to work for the campaign of Dela Rosa and vice-presidential candidate Senator Christopher “Bong” Go.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/02/21/bong-go-files-coc-for-vice-president">Long-time Duterte aide Bong Go files COC for vice president</a></li></ul>“We are prepared to have a candidate na Bato-Go. Sabi nga namin (as we say among ourselves), BaGo 2022.”“In fact stating next week we’ll be going, we’ll have some caravan sa provinces promoting the Senator Bato and Senator Go tandem. So may preparation na kami (We have preparations). Naghahanda rin kami (We are preparing) so we’re ready to push for a Bato-Go tandem in 2022.”Matibag said Dela Rosa has always been in their minds as a possible presidential candidate.“If you recall my previous pronouncement before, yung mas maaga pa namang (our earlier) pronouncement, we’ve been mentioning also the name of Senator Bato.”“And when I was asked, I remember, who are the possible presidentiables, the name of Senator Bato was also mentioned, Senator Tolentino and some other cabinet secretaries.”Matibag also noted that Dela Rosa also has a track record in public service.“Well he’s the one who’s available and also, we’re not saying he’s the best but, because of course originally we were pushing Senator Bong Go but sabi nga namin an alternative is Senator Bato.”“We were talking of track record. He was a chief [Philippine National Police], he’s a senator for 3 years. If you recall in 2001, that was the time Senator Ping Lacson was elected as senator, coming from his military service and in 2004 he ran for President.”“So if you look at history, hindi naman natin siguro pwedeng sukatin yung qualification at kakayahan ng tao based on how long he sits in a position as a politician. But he also managed the PNP, mahirap i-manage yung PNP and also there’s a track record of his military service as a policeman na nakita naman natin na he [rose] from mababang position, and now he’s a senator,” he said.(So if you look at history, I don’t think we can measure someone’s qualification based on how long he has held a position as a politician. But he also managed the PNP, and it’s hard to manage the PNP. And also there’s a track record of his military service as a policeman and we saw how he rose from a low position, and now he’s a senator.)<div>--ANC, 11 October 2021</div><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/11/21/bato-says-told-to-run-for-president-2-hours-before-coc-filing-deadline">Dela Rosa says picked as presidential bet 2 hours before COC filing deadline</a></li></ul>

Sen. Ronald 'Bato' Dela Rosa is the presidential candidate of the PDP-Laban wing backed by President Rodrigo Duterte for now, Secretary-General Melvin Matibag said.