Duterte’s Son Drops Out of Race for Philippine House Speaker

(Bloomberg) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s eldest child Paolo Duterte said he won’t seek the leadership of the House of Representatives after meeting with his father.

“We both agreed that this will not be the right time for me to be Speaker,” the younger Duterte said in a statement posted on Facebook on Saturday. Paolo, a first-time congressman, said earlier this month that the House is divided and he might be able to unite it as five others are seeking the post.

ABS-CBN reported on Saturday that Paolo and his sister, Davao Mayor Sara Duterte, met with three contenders for the House leadership.

--With assistance from Clarissa Batino.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andreo Calonzo in Manila at acalonzo1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at sadam2@bloomberg.net, Clarissa Batino, Matthew Brockett

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