The move was helped by a relationship developing between Ms Sara Duterte and Ms Imee Marcos, 62, a provincial governor and key figure in the still influential family of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled the Philippines for two decades before being ousted in a 1986 uprising. Marcos urges Duterte not to resign, Robredo’s lawyer insists VP is qualified

PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte may step down if former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. were to be successful in challenging his 2016 vice presidential election loss, said the chief executive’s spokesman on Thursday, August 16. Marcos won 14.1 million votes in the 2016 vice presidential race, an election that is conducted separately from the presidency in the Philippines, narrowly losing to the opposition Liberal Party candidate Leni Robredo. He just has to hold on as long as he can.”

Duterte acknowledges that, and on Tuesday said he can’t resign because a constitutional succession would mean handing power to opposition leader and vice president Robredo, who was elected separately.
Vice President Leni Robredo protests President Rodrigo Duterte's remark that her hometown Naga City is a "hotbed of shabu."