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Is Sara Duterte reinventing herself for a 2028 Philippine presidential run?
Showcasing a kinder image to overseas Filipinos, Sara Duterte-Carpio appears to be positioning herself for a future presidential bid
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A kinder, gentler and more personable Sara Duterte-Carpio stood before a crowd of about 2,000 people at Southorn Stadium in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai district on March 9.
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This was not the same Sara who threatened to assassinate the current Philippine president and fantasised about beheading him last year.
Nor was it the Sara who physically assaulted a court bailiff back in 2011.
Instead, the Philippine vice-president offered heartfelt thanks to God for granting her the chance to address overseas Filipino workers and issued an uncharacteristically contrite apology for the “mistake” of running alongside President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr in the 2022 elections.
Even after her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, was arrested and whisked away to International Criminal Court detention on March 11, no fiery outburst nor threat escaped her lips.
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Instead, she hinted – much as she had in Hong Kong – that she would be open to running for president in 2028.
The transformation in her public persona and political strategy began at Southorn Stadium. There, for the first time, she spoke candidly about her fraught relationship with her father, even thanking him for pushing her to finish her studies.
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