Digong shrugs off bishops’ disapproval

MANILA, Philippines - “I will not die if the Catholics will not vote for me.”

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has shrugged off some Catholic bishops’ seeming disapproval of his presidential bid, saying the coming May 9 elections will be like a referendum for him and the prelates.

He said he does not care if the Catholic hierarchy would not endorse him as he reiterated his support for family planning.

“Some bishops came out saying ‘Do not vote for Duterte.’ I said let this election be a sort of a referendum, a sort of a plebiscite for the church and me,” Duterte said during a forum with The STAR executives, editors and reporters on Wednesday.

He also urged all Catholics “to heed the call of the bishops.”  

“They say it would be a sin to vote for me. Good. If I lose I will not die. You should listen to the bishops not to vote for me. That’s right. Anyway, I don’t believe in the bishops,” Duterte added.

Recently, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, retired Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez and Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz have raised some concerns on the qualification of Duterte to become president. 

Duterte was endorsed by the Iglesia ni Cristo church the other night.

The mayor also vowed that, if he wins, the Catholic Church would have no role under his administration.

“No more. Why should I acknowledge them? They say I should not be elected. I will not die if the Catholics will not vote for me,” Duterte said.

He added that he supports family planning, both modern and natural methods, stressing that the ideal number of children per family is only two to three so they could be raised properly.