Bato on Duterte jet ski ride joke: ‘That’s him plain and simple’
Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa. (Screen grab/Senate PRIB file photo)
MANILA, Philippines—Some senators are not laughing at President Rodrigo Duterte’s jet ski ride joke.
“I knew he was joking. I’m a jet skier and I knew then that it was not possible,” Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III said in a text message when sought for comment on Duterte’s latest remark that his promise to ride a jet ski to the Spratly Islands and plant a Philippine flag there was just a “pure campaign joke.”
In a separate text message, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa had this to say to Duterte’s campaign joke: “Well, that’s him plain and simple.”
“Joke or no joke, it is only China that could alter its own plans and intentions on the disputed WPS [West Philippine Sea],” Dela Rosa added.
But what Duterte may consider a joke could be no “laughing matter” for Filipinos especially on serious matters like territorial disputes, another former top cop, Senator Panfilo Lacson, said.
“It’s very hard to read his mind. He may be sending mixed signals such that we don’t know if he’s serious or joking. His spokesperson would say he is joking, but there are times he seems serious in his statements. We don’t know anymore. We have a very big problem in our hand,” Lacson said over ABS-CBN News Channel.
“When he addresses the nation, we don’t know when he is joking or serious. Is it up to us to understand which is which? It’s really hard for Filipinos,” he added.
Senator Leila de Lima, meanwhile, chided Duterte “for fooling the Filipino people by using his deceptive tricks to win the 2016 election,” citing in particular his jet ski ride promise to the Spratly Islands.
“Duterte’s recent remark only affirmed what we already know: That he really has no plans to invoke our sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea. Joke lang para kay Duterte ang napaka-importanteng isyu sa bansa kaya patuloy ang pagkamkam ng Tsina sa ating teritoryo at pagnakaw sa kabuhayan ng mga mangingisdang Pilipino,” De Lima, one of Duterte’s staunchest critics, said in a statement.
(Duterte is treating this very important issue of the country as a joke so China continues invading our territory and robbing our Filipino fishermen of their livelihood.)
She also lamented that Duterte’s campaign in the 2016 elections was waged on “pure gimmickry with no solid program of government…”
“And he even has the gall to call those who believe in his campaign promise as stupid. Classic Duterte! Isa siyang napakalaking joke na nangyari sa bansa na hindi nakakatawa [He is one big joke that ever happened in our country that no one is laughing],” De Lima said.
She then called on the people not to be fooled again by politicians when they elect a new president in 2022.
In his regular public address on Monday, Duterte admitted that he was only joking when he made that jet ski ride promise during the 2016 campaign.
“Panahon ‘yan sa kampanya ‘yan. At saka ‘yung biro na ‘yun, ‘yung bravado ko, it was a pure campaign joke at kung naniniwala kayo sa kabila, I would say you are really stupid,” he said.
(That was during election season. And then there was that joke, my bravado, which was purely political in nature, and if you believe it, I would say you are really stupid.)
