Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Secretary Bong Go expressed gratitude to Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio for endorsing his possible candidacy for the Senate as he took his oath with the regional party Hugpong ng Pagbabago.
“I am very thankful to Mayor Sara and her regional party, itong Hugpong Ng Pagbabago. I am so happy because Hugpong sa Taong Lungsod used to be the local party of our then-Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. It has grown bigger, now it is a regional party and hopefully someday it will be a national party — a party to reckon with,” Go said in an interview.
At the same time, Go said there is no conflict with his joining HNP and his being a member of the Partido Demokratikong Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) since the former is a regional party and the latter is a national one.
“(HNP) is a regional party. Pwede naman regional party ang Hugpong ng Pagbabago at the same time you are a member of a national party po (One can be a member of a regional party like Hugpong ng Pagbabago and at the same a member of a national party),” he said.
Go also emphasized that while HNP endorsed his candidacy, he is still “not interested” in running for the Senate.
“I have the same stand, I am not interested. As I have told you time and time again, only the President can change my mind,” he said.