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An offiicals of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio would continue her father’s vision to enhance mobility and connectivity in the entire Philippines, based on her own successful infrastructure programs in Davao City, should she decide to run for the president in 2022.

DOTr assistance secretary Eymard Eje, speaking at an alliance meeting between the Hugpong Para Kay Sara citizens movement and the Inday Sara Duterte Ako (ISDA) civic organization, pointed out that Mayor Sara’s various infrastructure projects in Davao City which, aside from seeking to make lives better for its citizens, is based on the principle of “moving people instead of vehicles.”

“Definitely she will continue the so-called golden age of infrastructure which President Rodrigo Duterte started through his “Build, Build Build”national program,” explained Eje, who is also  the OIC general manager of trains at the DOTr.

“But I’m sure Mayor Sara will add her own strategy for a modern, infrastructure-based economy, as can be seen in Davao City’ Interim Bus System (IBS), expansion of streets and highways, underground cabling, mitigation of floods through a city-wide drainage improvement system, and the modernization of the Davao international airport and port authority, among others” he said.

“If you’ve been to Davao City, you will have seen the major improvements initiated by her father and the Mayor herself. Both believe in moving away from small pedicabs and jeepneys and implementing an efficient mass transport system which will improve the mobility of people and goods,” he noted.

The modernization of the city’s road system, airport and ports are also part of Mayor Duterte’s strategy to strengthen the local economy, Eje said. “I’ve known Mayor Sara for years. She shares the same mindset with her father when it comes to infrastructure: these projects lead to a future characterized by strong economic growth, sustainable development, and improved quality of life for all,” he explained.

Eje met with House deputy speaker Bernadette Herrera, secretary-general of HPS, to cement the cooperation between ISDA and the citizens movement, both of whom seek to persuade Mayor Duterte to run for president in the 2022 election.

“We at ISDA are extremely grateful to deputy speaker Herrera for giving us this opportunity to be of help to the country,” Eje said.

The Asec explained that ISDA is more of a civic organization whose main activities include relief operations, provision of “ayuda”, or assistance, to those affected by the Covid -19 pandemic, and other social amelioration work.

“ISDA will do more of the civic works necessary, which is our forte, while HPS can focus on political strategy,” Eje said. “But at the end of the day, we both share the same vision to convince Mayor Sara to lead the country in the next six years.”

Eje said ISDA’s belief in a Duterte presidency is anchored on three factors:  the Davao City Mayor’s strong and decisive personality; her natural instincts as a woman, especially when it comes to the welfare of the less fortunate; and her unassailable record as a chief executive in Davao City.

“The function of a mayor is not that different from a president,” he pointed out. “Mayor Sara needs only to expand her scope and strategic direction because when you are a mayor, you are a actually a president of a small country.”