Move over Jadine and Kathniel!

A new "loveteam" unexpectedly made its debut at the Philippine Presidential Debate held in Cagayan de Oro on Sunday, Feb 21.

Presidential candidates Rodrigo Duterte and Miriam Santiago showed their mutual respect and admiration for each other during the first round of the debate.

True to his reputation of being a Casanova, Mayor Duterte began sweet-talking at the start of his turn on the round against Miriam Santiago was initially asked by the hosts about the condition of her health. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2014. After Santiago answered, Duterte was asked to react.

Instead of making his rebuttal, Duterte instead praised his opponent. “It’s good that Ma’am Miriam is here because she is one of the two only qualified to run this country,” he said.

Because the Mindanaoan bet was not disputing Miriam’s statements, she just continued elaborating on how she would spend her years in public service.

She ended her speech by attacking the country’s corrupt officials witht the exception of one.

"Graft and corruption is endemic and everybody speaks out but nobody has done much except Mayor Rodrigo Duterte," Miriam said to cheers.

There is mutual admiration between the two presidential candidates, and it is evident on their comments about each other during the campaign trail.

This story first appeared on Coconuts Manila.