BEFORE dawn broke, thousands had already gathered — some stretching, some praying, many simply standing still, waiting for the signal to run. By 5 a.m., the crowd had swelled to more than 5,000 runners from all over Davao Region for the Run for Du30 event.
When Vice President Sara Duterte stepped onto the stage at the starting point, the crowd erupted. She gave a short message of the thanks to the crowd of supporters. “On behalf of the family, we thank you for your prayers and your continued support to former president Rodrigo Duterte,” she said.
She also addressed the social-media rumor claiming that the former President had been found unconscious inside his ICC cell.
“Dili to tinuod ug walay nahitabo na ing-ato… Ingon nya nga (It’s not true that something like that happened) maybe it was just a prank by many of my supporters,” she declared.
The vice president spoke about the family’s ongoing appeal before the ICC for her father’s interim release, framing it as both a legal battle and a prayer.
“We hope to hear good news for the public hearing on the appeal for his interim release on Nov. 28. But if not, the family will continue to support him in his stay in The Hague and, of course, continue to work with his defense team with regard to his legal case.”
The Run for Du30 is the second leg of the continuous activity aiming to galvanize support and apply pressure for the release of former President Rodrigo Duterte from ICC detention on a crimes against humanity charge. He was arrested in March this year and brought to The Hague, a move that his family and critics insisted was “extraordinary rendition” by the Marcos administration.
He won the Davao mayoralty position in absentia, although he would be replaced by his son, current vice mayor Sebastian Duterte, since he could not fulfill his duties as Davao City’s chief executive.
Organizers later said they expected thousands — but the turnout exceeded their expectations
