2 days ago
3
CEBU CITY — A core volunteer group that backed Rodrigo Duterte's 2016 presidential run has raised concerns over politicians allegedly leveraging the former president's name for personal gain ahead of the May 2025 elections.
Edward Mendez, a former PDP-Laban Cebu president and strategist during Duterte's campaign, said the movement was built by ordinary citizens who believed in Duterte's leadership, not by politicians who may be seeking to benefit from his popularity.
He emphasized that while anyone can join the activities in support of Duterte, they must do so as private individuals and not in their capacity as politicians.
Mendez pointed out that some politicians have begun using Duterte-related events as platforms to promote their candidacies, which he warned could overshadow the movement's true cause and turn away genuine supporters.
He recalled being at the Unity Walk at Plaza Independencia last March 15 in Cebu City where many attendees reportedly left after realizing that the event had become political.
Get the latest news
delivered to your inbox
Sign up for The Manila Times newsletters
By signing up with an email address, I acknowledge that I have read and agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
He said he joined the gathering as a private citizen and observed that the presence of politi-cians on stage discouraged others from staying.
The event was led by Cebu gubernatorial candidate Pam Baricuatro and former Cebu City mayor Michael Rama.
Mendez questioned Rama's loyalty, recalling that during the 2016 campaign, Rama supported then-presidential candidate Jejomar Binay instead of Duterte.
He said their group had coordinated a Duterte-Rama tandem at the time, with Duterte as the presidential candidate and Rama as mayoral bet, but Rama's camp allegedly removed Duter-te's posters and replaced them with Binay's, referring to Cebu as "Binay country."
Mendez noted that after Duterte won in 2016, early volunteers like him were gradually side-lined as traditional politicians took over leadership positions within the movement.
He said he had only accepted a role in PDP-Laban because no one else would, but was later re-placed once the election concluded.
He criticized politicians for using the strong sentiment among Duterte's supporters to gain votes and sympathy, stressing that the movement should remain independent of political ambitions.
He warned that allowing political figures to dominate Duterte-related events could damage the unity of the former president's support base.
Mendez reiterated that the group remains committed to protecting Duterte's legacy and will not allow it to be exploited by political opportunists.
