The Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban), the political party of leading presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, said that the public should not concern itself too much on the past marital woes of the tough-talking mayor.
In a media forum on Wednesday, PDP-Laban spokesperson Atty. Paola Alvarez said that the findings from Duterte鈥檚 psychological report鈥攚hich was used in the annulment case against his former wife Elizabeth Zimmerman鈥攄o not mean that he is not fit to become the next highest official of the land.
Alvarez said that being a husband is different from being the country鈥檚 president.
鈥淎ng reason po kasi na after ng annulment ay puwede mag-asawa ulit is because hindi ibig sabihin na hindi kayo nag-work psychologically ng partner niyo ay ibig sabihin ay hindi ka na magwowork sa ibang tao. It is limited to you and that spouse.鈥�
(The reason why after the annulment one can remarry means that just because you and your partner did not work out psychologically does not mean you cannot work out with another person.)
鈥淗indi ibig sabihin na hindi siya magaling na asawa ay hindi siya magiging magaling na pangulo. Magkaiba po ang pagiging asawa sa pagiging pangulo,鈥� Alvarez said during the 鈥淧andesal Forum.鈥�
(Just because he was not a good husband doesn鈥檛 mean he won鈥檛 become a good president. Being a husband is different from being the president.)
She then lashed at Duterte鈥檚 rivals, saying that no one can claim that they have a picture-perfect marriage.
鈥淪ino po ba sa kanila ang magaling na asawa? Wala naman po, di ba? (Who among them is a good spouse? None of them, right?)鈥�
鈥淗uwag na po natin tirahin yung kanyang pagiging asawa (Let us not criticize him as a husband),鈥� Alvarez added.
The findings of Duterte鈥檚 psychological report were first made public by ABS-CBN. It said that the mayor聽has 鈥渘arcissistic personality disorder鈥� or 鈥渆xtreme self-conceit.鈥�
The assessment also聽said Duterte has a 鈥減ervasive tendency to demean, humiliate others and violate their rights and feelings鈥� and 鈥渄ifficulty controlling his urges and emotions.鈥�
Duterte has been under fire for his controversial statements he made in a recent campaign sortie on the rape slay of Australian lay missionary Jacqueline Hamill in 1989. He said that he should have been the first one to rape Hamill.
READ: Duterte rape joke on Australian missionary: Too much?
The mayor has not apologized for his remarks but only for the gutter language he used, saying that he made the pronouncement in a burst of anger against criminals.聽RAM
READ: Despite outcry over rape 鈥榡oke,鈥� Duterte refuses to say sorry