Baste Duterte steps in as acting Davao city mayor amid father’s detention

National

DAVAO city’s mayoral baton has passed — at least temporarily — to Sebastian Duterte, after his father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, missed his oath-taking while detained in The Hague on serious international charges.

The former president won the Davao City mayoral race in the recent midterm elections but remains in custody in the Netherlands, where he faces crimes against humanity charges over the bloody anti-drug campaign carried out during his administration — a crackdown that left over 6,000 dead.

With his oath still pending, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has referred the matter to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) for resolution.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia clarified that the law does not dictate a specific location for oath-taking. “Where the oath-taking takes place is not indicated in the law. There’s also no guideline on whether oath-taking should be done in the consulate, embassy premises or any other place,” he said in a Philstar report.

In the meantime, the city’s leadership has moved forward. Sebastian Duterte, who had already been sworn in as vice mayor last week, has stepped into the role of acting mayor in accordance with the city’s succession rules.

The DILG is now tasked with determining the legal pathway for the elected mayor to officially assume office — whether that may involve an oath-taking abroad or an alternative remedy.

For now, the younger Duterte is holding the reins at city hall, pending developments in both the legal and political arenas.