MANILA - Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto on Monday said he has been refraining from answering political questions to avoid rumors that he is politicking at the height of the COVID-19 crisis.

Sotto, who ran without a vice mayor in 2019, neither confirmed nor denied that he was finalizing talks with a former Pasig official who plans to run as his second in command in next year's elections.

"It's not the right time to talk about politics now," he said, when asked to confirm information that he will run alongside a former Pasig official.

"I've been very firm that we shouldn't talk about politics with everything [that is happening]. We're in the middle of ECQ," he said told reporters in an online press conference.

Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto mum on his possible slate for #Halalan2022 , says he is refraining from political discussions as of now to avoid rumors that he is politicking amid #COVID19 crisis. pic.twitter.com/meorMHQOWC

— Kat Domingo (@_katrinadomingo) August 9, 2021

Sotto earlier admitted that he plans to seek reelection in 2022.

"Siyempre napag-iisipan pa rin natin 'yung pulitika paminsan-minsan lalo na sa lokal, but we really need to focus," he said.

(Of course we think about politics from time to time, especially local politics, but we really need to focus.)

"I understand that anything that I say in public siyempre manganganak na 'yung kuwento, ng chismis, paguusapan na. Sasabihin hindi tayo nagfo-focus sa trabaho," he said.

(I understand that anything that I say in public may expand into more stories, rumors, that will be talked about. They might say we are not focusing on our job.)

• Pasig mayor Vico Sotto says to seek reelection

Sotto, the executive vice president of Aksyon Demokratiko, has also distanced himself from his party's plan to recruit Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso months before the upcoming 2022 national elections.

"Laban pa lang para sa malinis na paggobyerno sa LGU, mabigat na. Hindi panahon para makisawsaw sa politika ng nasyonal," Sotto said in an earlier tweet.

(The fight for clean governance in local government units keeps us busy already. This is not the time to meddle in national politics.)

• Isko Moreno to join Aksyon Demokratiko ahead of 2022 elections

When asked when he would be willing to discuss his political plans, Sotto said: "Either when things settle down with COVID or kapag malapit na talaga yung deadline [ng filing of candidacy]."

National and local politicians are expected to file their certificates of candidacies before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in October.

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