MANILA, Philippines — “Don’t waste your life defending the dishonest, the corrupt, and the people whom you know will abuse their office.“
Senator Leila de Lima gave this advice to Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio amid their word war on the issue of honesty in public office.
“Unless you are one of them, don’t waste your life defending the dishonest, the corrupt, and the people whom you know will abuse their office. Your ambition should not take precedence over our country’s future,” De Lima said in an open letter to Duterte-Carpio on Tuesday.
This after Duterte-Carpio wrote her open letter to De Lima, where she slammed the detained senator for being the worst “because you are both intelligent and dumb in one head.”
READ: Sara writes Leila: Make law requiring honesty for politicians
De Lima also advised the presidential daughter not to “fool” herself.
“The spotlight and lavish attention is not for you, it is for your father. And the politicians you surround yourself with are not there because they believe in your vision. They’re there because they want to use you,” she said.
She further urged Duterte-Carpio to use her platform “to fight for a better Philippines.”
“Do the right thing. Stop campaigning for trapos (traditional politicians) and misfits,” she added.
The word war between the senator and the Davao City mayor started when De Lima took a swipe at Duterte-Carpio and Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo for disregarding honesty as an election issue.
READ: De Lima: Blatant disregard for honesty is ‘damning’
According to De Lima, anyone who seeks public office “must have honesty and integrity.”
“Public office is a public trust,” she said.
“What kind of idiot would think that a dishonest candidate will be an honest public official?,” she added. /muf