CONGRESS on Monday proclaimed Rodrigo Duterte the nation’s next president following his landslide election win this month, but he snubbed the high-profile event.
A joint session of the House of Representatives and the Senate in Manila endorsed the official count of the ballots, which saw Duterte win by more than six million votes. Duterte declined to attend, remaining instead in his southern hometown of Davao.
Duterte’s refusal to attend broke tradition and disappointed even some of his supporters, reinforcing the foul-mouthed politician’s reputation as a maverick who is happy to offend the political establishment.
“I am not attending the proclamation. I’ve never attended any proclamation all my life,” Duterte told reporters on the weekend in Davao, a city that he has ruled as mayor for most of the past two decades.
Duterte, who won largely due to an incendiary law-and-order platform headlined by a vow to wipe out crime within six months, is due to be sworn in on June 30.
Duterte pledged to give security forces shoot-to-kill orders, and vowed that tens of thousands of criminals would die. Since the election Duterte has repeatedly encouraged police to kill drug suspects, and said he would bring back the death penalty.
Also on the campaign trail, he variously denied and acknowledged links to vigilante death squads in Davao.
Duterte has promised to stay in Davao until his term starts, and has been holding midnight news conferences at various hotels. This has forced politicians, power brokers, business leaders and courtiers to fly from Manila for an audience.
He has also begun forming his Cabinet from Davao, naming many regional politicians to key posts. He has also met with communist and Muslim guerrilla emissaries ahead of planned peace talks.
Duterte has said he wants to stay in Davao because he is comfortable there. He has also repeatedly expressed his disdain for spending time in Manila, which he described last week as a “dead city” that is overrun by slums.
At Monday’s congressional session, Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo was declared the winner of the vice president election, narrowly edging out Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son and namesake of the late strongman.
Robredo, a member of outgoing President Benigno Aquino III’s Liberal Party, attended the event along with her family and supporters.
Highlighting the importance of the event to many in the Philippines, the ceremonies were broadcast live on national television.
Outgoing Senate President Franklin Drilon said Duterte was the first president to be proclaimed in absentia. He and other congressional leaders noted that his absence would have no legal effect on his proclamation.
The leader of the independent minority bloc in the House, Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, said he believed Duterte would be able to heal the divisions in the country that were aggravated by a rancorous presidential election.
“My best wishes for the success of President-elect Rody, let us rally behind to support his administration for the betterment of Filipinos,” Romualdez said.
“President-elect Rody has a clear vision for the country and has a great ability to get the job done. We look forward to a productive government that will heal political bickering, continue to inspire and influence many Filipinos to work for the inclusive growth in the countryside,” Romualdez added.
The proclamation was briefly disrupted by a congressman who questioned his removal from the congressional roster.
Immediately after the joint session of Congress proclaimed Duterte and Robredo, former Northern Samar congressman Harlin Abayon questioned his exclusion from the roster.
Abayon had earlier been replaced by Rep. Raul Daza, after the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal decided an election protest in his favor.
When Abayon refused to back down, the sergeant at arms escorted him out of the session hall.
