Friends turned foes?
A feisty Mar Roxas dared Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte to slap him if he could prove that his Wharton degree is fake.
鈥淪ampalin niya ako. Punta siya dito. Kung hindi, punta ako doon sa Davao, sampalin niya ako sa airport, tingnan natin,鈥� Roxas said in an interview at the University of the Philippines Bahay ng Alumni on Monday.
But if Roxas could give enough proof that he鈥檚 indeed a graduate of Wharton Business School, he said Duterte should be ready to get slapped.
鈥淕anito, magsampalan nalang kami. Kung hindi totoo ang Wharton degree ko, sampalin mo ako. Hindi ako iiwas or iilag. Pero kung totoo yung Wharton degree ko, sasampalin kita,鈥� said the Liberal Party standard-bearer.
The latest heated exchange between the former friends stemmed from Duterte鈥檚 claim that Roxas was faking his degree from the prestigious Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
鈥淎ng mahirap kay Mayor Digong Duterte, nasanay siya na one-man rule. Nasanay siya na kung hindi niya nakukuha ang gusto niya (at) kung may nagsasabi sa kanya ng katotohanan ay mananampal nalang siya o pagbubuhatan nalang niya ng kamay,鈥� said Roxas.
鈥淪ubukan natin, tingnan natin. Wala naman akong kilalang malaking tao na na sinampal niya, lahat聽maliliit, mga walaang kalaban-laban,鈥� he added.
Before it became official that Roxas and Duterte would be both vying for presidency, the two had discussed their political plans whenever Roxas visited Davao City.
Roxas even called Duterte in the past as his 鈥渓ong-time friend.鈥�
鈥淎lam niyo Digong, ang turing ko sayo, kaibigan. Nirespeto kita, pinahalagahan ko ang aking pakikipagkaibigan sayo. Pero mabuti na rin lang at nakita na natin ang katotohanan ng pagkatao mo,鈥� he said.