Acting Davao City Mayor Baste Duterte has left the country just days before his anticipated boxing match with Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief PGen. Nicolas Torre III, raising questions on whether he is backing out from his earlier challenge.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), with assistance from the Bureau of Immigration (BI), confirmed that Duterte departed for Singapore early this morning from the Davao International Airport along with his family.
The departure comes two days before the scheduled “fistfight” between Duterte and PNP Chief Torre, which was supposed to take place on Sunday, July 27, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Torre had earlier accepted Duterte’s challenge, made during his “Basta Dabawenyo” podcast.
Before his departure, Duterte’s brother, Davao City First District Representative Paolo Duterte, had demanded that Torre sign a waiver to ensure that no legal action would be taken against the Duterte family if any “serious” injuries occurred during the match.
Baste Duterte had also challenged Torre to undergo a mandatory drug test—one he insisted should be spearheaded by President Bongbong Marcos himself, who has long faced allegations of alleged cocaine use.
The Games and Amusement Board (GAB) had already released guidelines for the safety and regulation of the supposed boxing event between the two public figures.
As of writing, neither Duterte nor his office has issued an official statement on the sudden departure or the status of the bout.