Baste clarifies apology to Imee: It was out of pity

MANILA, Philippines — Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte called out Sen. Imee Marcos for using him in her “drama” in the media.

Duterte, unamused by the senator’s account of his apology, took to social media to air his displeasure.

In a social media post on Saturday, the mayor clarified that his apology was not for asking her brother, President Marcos, to resign, but out of pity for her.

“Madame Imee, let me clarify because you are using this in your drama in the media. I asked for forgiveness because I pitied you, not because of what I said about your brother, the President,” Duterte said.

In his speech during the Hakbang ug Maisug leaders’ Forum on Jan. 28, the youngest son of former president Rodrigo Duterte called for the President’s resignation.

“Mr. President, if you do not have love and aspirations for your country, resign,” he said.

The younger Duterte also told the senator to stop using him for publicity.

“Stop using me in your publicity stunts. I let it go the first time, but you are still making noise about it,” he added in Bisaya.

In response, Marcos said she and Duterte have already talked and all is well.

She, however, refused to disclose more details as doing so would only be interpreted differently by some people.

“We’ve talked, it’s OK... I will no longer say anything. And in this situation, it is very easy to distort and assign the wrong meaning,” Marcos said.

“It’s like someone wants us to fight. It’s good and we’ve already talked, and I won’t talk about it anymore!” she added. — Cecille Suerte Felipe