Otso Diretso senatorial candidate Erin Tañada reminded President Rodrigo Duterte about their good relationship in the past.
According to Tañada, a former lawmaker from Quezon City, President Rodrigo Duterte who’s the Mayor of Davao City during that time wanted him to run as Senator in 2013.
The opposition candidate was reacting on the statements of the President, comparing the senatorial candidate to his father, former Senator Wigberto Tañada.
“Maraming Salamat sa pansin PDu30. Why then did you want to endorse me for the 2013 Senate elections if PNoy included me in the Senate slate? You went to the hotel I was staying to ask me if I was running… You said I deserved to be in the Senate!” Tañada posted on Twitter.
He’s one of the politicians eyed by the Aquino administration to run in 2013 as one of Liberal Party’s candidate, but this plan didn’t happen.
Maraming Salamat sa pansin PDu30. Why then did you want to endorse me for the 2013 Senate elections if PNoy included me in the Senate slate? You went to the hotel I was staying to ask me if I was running… You said I deserved to be in the Senate!
— Erin Tañada (@erintanada) April 20, 2019
On April 17, President Duterte belittled Tañada together with other Otso Diretso senatorial candidates, saying that the latter is nothing compared to his father who’s his idol during his youth.
He also called Tañada as the defender of the communists.
“Erin Tañada. What’s in a name? Tatay niya idol namin lahat mga abugado, marami man tayo abugado dito. Binabasa natin ‘yung libro. Pero itong Erin na ito, we elected him once upon a time a senator. What did he do? Mag-sige depensa ng mga komunista sa korte,” Duterte said
“The government, which was paying for his salary, wala talagang ginawa. Ang tatay nationalist. Ito list lang, walang national,” he added.
The father of Tañada is a known activist and a critic of the Marcos administration.