Presidential candidate Faisal Mangondato said he expects to get the blessing of President Rodrigo Duterte in the May elections because they both have “Bangsamoro blood.”
Mangondato attended a thanksgiving event for Duterte in Marawi on Sunday.
Mangondato, quoted in an ABS-CBN news report said “President Duterte’s grandmother is from Lanao. I am also from Lanao. Our parents are relatives, in the Samporna side. I would be happy to be endorsed, hopefully, by President Duterte.”
Mangondato, 59, is running under the Katipunan ng Kamalayang Kayumanggi party. He is among the 10 candidates for president in the May elections.
He said if he gets Duterte’s backing, he would still campaign for his running-mate Carlos Serapio and not Duterte’s daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, who is also running for vice president.
Mangondato is also supporting the senatorial bid of Marawi civic leader Samira Gutoc even though they come from different political parties. He said he believes he still has a huge chance of winning the May elections, based on how people have received him during the campaign.
In the latest Pulse Asia survey, 0.4 percent of the respondents said they would vote for Mangondato if the elections were held from Feb. 18 to 23. He lands at No. 5 among the 10 presidential candidates in the poll.
Malacanang said Duterte has yet to formally endorse any presidential candidate but the faction he supports in his party, PDP-Laban, recently said it will support Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.