Duterte-Nograles feud heats up

DAVAO CITY – The seemingly never-ending feud between Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and first district Rep. Prospero Nograles has stirred the city’s political landscape again.

The bitter political enemies have lately been exchanging barbs, leading to their latest face-off the other day during a segment on the Umagang Kay Ganda morning show on ABS-CBN.

Both lawyers, Duterte and Nograles hurled accusations against each other, giving a glimpse, observers said, of how fierce the 2010 local elections would be.

Duterte also minced no words in firing off his accusations against Nograles during his radio program Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa last Sunday.

“All this is rooted in Nograles’ ambition to become mayor of Davao City which he even wrote in our high school yearbook at the Ateneo. But he just could not make it,” he said.

Nograles, for his part, said he was “not a bit afraid” of Duterte’s tirades, adding that he is willing to face the mayor but in a civilized manner and on valid issues.

Incidentally, both Duterte and Nograles are staunch allies of President Arroyo. Their rift started way back in 1988 and heightened when they ran against each other for mayor in the 1992 elections which Duterte won.

Duterte has since become the longest serving mayor in Davao City, while Nograles had had some political misfortunes before he won as congressman in 2001.

Both Duterte and Nograles are on their third and last term as mayor and first district congressman, respectively.

It remains to be seen if the two would retire from politics in 2010 and give way to their children.

Duterte’s daughter, Sara, is the city’s vice mayor while his son, Paolo, was recently elected chairman of Barangay Catalunan Grande.

Meanwhile, Nograles’ son, Karlo, failed to make it as a party-list representative after his group, the Kalahi Foundation, failed to get the required number of votes in the May national elections.