Sara Duterte will break with tradition for the swearing in ceremony on Sunday, opting to take her oath as the Philippines’ next vice president almost two weeks ahead of President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
The daughter of President Rodrigo Duterte chose to have her inauguration ceremony in the southern city of Davao, her family stronghold where she’s outgoing mayor. Her decision runs counter to a decades-old tradition where the two top leaders hold their inaugurations on June 30, the same day they assume their posts.
Sara Duterte said that she chose to be sworn in early so that her city can witness the ceremony. She also intends to attend Marcos’s swearing-in rites in Manila at the end of the month.
Her decision to hold her own inauguration shows she’s “treading her own path” when it comes to her father and Marcos, said Ramon Beleno, a faculty member at Ateneo de Davao University’s political science department.
“The spotlight is on her, unlike in a joint inauguration where the highlight is the president,” he said. She is also trying to maintain her connection in the southern Mindanao island, and “form her own niche” by taking her oath there, Beleno added.
The incoming vice-president garnered 32.2 million votes or 61.5% of the total in the May elections — an even bigger share compared to Marcos who also had a landslide win. Sara Duterte, who was the front-runner in early presidential surveys until she decided to run as Marcos’s deputy, will serve as education secretary.
