Outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte has agreed with the decision of President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to decline presidential debates during the campaign period.
He made the statement during his speech on Monday at the oath-taking ceremony of his son, Davao City Mayor-elect Sebastian Duterte, and other officials of his hometown.
"During the campaign, we had a limited time to talk, and the next time that you are a candidate, you are invited to do that… Tama si Marcos, decline," Duterte said.
"We were only given half a minute or one minute and that’s it. You cannot even talk further… It was for show," he added.
According to Duterte, election debates only benefited television marketers, who earn money at the expense of the public.
Marcos was heavily criticized throughout the campaign for not attending most presidential debates such as the one organized by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and those hosted by major media networks.
