Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats vice presidential candidate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has capped her 28-day Mahalin Natin ang Pilipinas Ride (MNPR) that took her to at least 34 provinces around the country where she personally experienced the love, warmth, and support of Filipinos.
“I will never forget the warmth of the Filipino people we met along the way, and I will always remember the courage, strength, and the resiliency they’ve shown as we passed by rain or shine,” Duterte-Carpio said after her return to Davao City.
She also thanked her campaign managers, House Majority Leader and Lakas-CMD President Martin Romualdez and Davao Occidental Governor and Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP) President Claude Bautista, and Speaker Lord Allan Velasco for their support during her grueling and non-stop visit of the country’s provinces.
In most of the provinces she visited, Romualdez was there to welcome and accompany her.
The Davao City Mayor said her ride, which took her from the southern part up to the northern portion of the country, gave her a personal glimpse of the varying situations and conditions of the places and provinces that she visited.
Despite the realities on the ground, she said she could not help but admire the spirit, character, and resilience of Filipinos, which she witnessed and experienced during her ride.
One of the core platforms of Duterte-Carpio and her presidential tandem former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is the equitable development of barangays, including equity in the delivery of basic services, job generation, and economic development.
Meanwhile, Duterte-Carpio cited the importance of local executives, including vice mayors, in running the bureaucracy amid various challenges like perennial lack of funding and new problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Local government officials matter. In the front lines of every crisis, tragedy, and calamity, vice mayors lead, respond and resolve eminent and infinite challenges in their localities,” Duterte said during the Vice Mayors’ League of the Philippines 1st Quarter 2022 Regular National Executive Board Meeting.
“Vice mayors are very important because the mayor cannot function without the vice mayor, because the vice mayor has the power of the purse and the budget ordinances,” she added.