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Sara calls 1Sambayan ‘authoritarian’

By Che Palicte

March 18, 2021, 6:42 pm

<p>Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte. <em>(PNA file photo)</em></p>

Davao City Mayor Sara Z. Duterte. (PNA file photo)

DAVAO CITY – Mayor Sara Z. Duterte slammed the 1Sambayan, describing the group as authoritarian for claiming to be a coalition of democratic forces but chose to reject those who disagree with them.

“They sound authoritarian to me. If they want to be successful, they should have called for unity,” Mayor Sara said in a statement Thursday.

Headed by retired Supreme Court (SC) associate justice Antonio Carpio, the 1Sambayan touts itself as the only united opposition that could win against the current administration.

Carpio said their goal is to endorse national candidates for top positions in the 2022 polls who would fight against the candidates endorsed by the Duterte administration.

“We have decided to come together to choose the best candidates for president, vice-president senators. Political parties and groups in the opposition have pledged their support to 1Sambayan and have agreed to abide by its selection of candidates,” Carpio said in a video message during the 1Sambayan convenors' launching on Thursday.

He said the group represents the democratic forces in the country, which includes the Bayan Muna, Magdalo, labor groups, the poor, and the religious.

Duterte, however, said what country needs now is unity, not "messages with the word reject. Othering is the word that comes to mind when they speak." (PNA)

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