Baste scoots off to Singapore; GAB offers referee
Credit to Author: Edith Regalado| Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800
MANILA, Philippines — Davao City acting Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte left for Singapore early yesterday morning, together with his family and staff.
Duterte left ahead of his publicly anticipated charity exhibition boxing match against Philippine National Police chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila tomorrow.
Torre had earlier agreed to the acting mayor’s challenge for a boxing match, to which Duterte had added conditions after the PNP chief accepted the offer.
The report of Duterte’s departure was confirmed by the National Bureau of Investigation yesterday.
NBI Director Jaime Santiago said the mayor, his family and office staff left the country on Scoot Flight TR 369, which took off from Davao International Airport at 7:10 a.m.
While the Bureau of Immigration has yet to reflect records of Duterte’s flight, the NBI noted that such data typically takes 24 hours to appear in the system.
Duterte has yet to release an official statement on the details of his trip and when he will return.
It remains uncertain if Duterte will proceed to The Hague to visit his father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, who is detained at the International Criminal Court (ICC) facility on charges of crimes against humanity.
Torre was responsible for enforcing the ICC’s arrest of the former president back in March.
On his YouTube vlog on July 20, the younger Duterte publicly challenged the PNP chief to a fistfight, and said Torre was only “brave” because he was in a position of power.
“I can take you in a fistfight,” Duterte said.
Torre responded that he was open to the challenge, and suggested it be held for a good cause, with the proceeds going to flood victims in Luzon in particular.
However, in a statement Thursday, Duterte said he would only proceed with the match if President Marcos orders all government officials to undergo hair follicle drug testing.
Davao City first district Rep. Paolo Duterte is urging Torre to first sign a waiver before entering the ring with his younger brother.
The waiver would absolve the mayor of any legal liability should anything happen to either of them.
“If he is serious, he should sign a waiver first. My brother may be jailed if Torre is seriously hit or dies,” the congressman said in a statement.
Torre was mum on Duterte’s demand – that he should ask Marcos and all elected officials to undergo a hair follicle drug test – before they slug it out in a boxing ring and instead, continued with his training yesterday.
Amid heavy rainfall, Torre jogged around the PNP Transformation Oval at Camp Crame in Quezon City. An amateur boxer in his police student days, he started his drills at around 6:20 a.m. and went for about 10 rounds.
Meanwhile, the Games and Amusements Board (GAB) has given its blessing to the potential boxing match between Torre and Duterte.
The government agency made the announcement yesterday through a two-page board resolution signed by its chairman Francisco Rivera, and commissioners Manuel Plaza III and Angel Bautista, and posted on their Facebook page.
The letter indicated that GAB would recommend a qualified and accredited referee to officiate the duel, and direct its medical personnel to be on hand to assist the participants should the need arise.
The agency is tasked to regulate and supervise professional sports in the country, and has full jurisdiction on athletes, coaches, trainers, promoters, managers and events.
Even if Torre and Duterte are not professional athletes and have no GAB licenses, the agency said it is making sure that if ever the fight happens, security and safety measures will be in place.
The GAB admitted it got wind of the potential fight via news reports, and immediately threw its hat into the ring to ensure the safety of the boxers. — Jose Rodel Clapano, Mark Ernest Villeza, Emmanuel Tupas, Joey Villar