MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday joked that it would be cheaper for vice mayors to just pay someone to ambush the mayors of their localities than run in elections.
“To the vice mayors, don’t run in the next elections. Just pay someone to ambush the mayor so that you’ll be the [mayor]… You’ll spend a lot of money during elections but for the ambush, P50,000 is enough. There are a lot of crazy people here in Cebu ‘no? But I love Cebu actually,” Duterte said in Bisaya in a speech in Lapu-Lapu City on Thursday night.
Duterte made the speech during the joint meeting of the National Task Force (NTF) and the Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-Elcac) in Central Visayas.
In the same speech, the President also commended the NTF and RTF-Elcac for “collectively realizing the commitment of the government’s holistic and whole-of-nation approach to resolving communist insurgency.”
“Your serious efforts to deliver basic social services in conflict-affected areas truly help in bringing the government closer to the Filipino people,” he said.
He also said that the completion of the government’s commitments to achieve peace in the country “remains critical in the remaining three months of this administration.”
Duterte likewise enjoined local chief executives in Central Visayas to “synergize” their local efforts with the NTF and RTF-Elcac “in the fight against lawlessness and insurgency, and to support the Administration’s key programs in achieving sustainable [peace and] security.”
“To the government’s national and local partners in this endeavor, we assure you of the Administration’s unrelenting support in your respective initiatives in securing lasting peace,” said Duterte.
“The Filipino people deserve a peaceful and prosperous nation, and that is what the government should provide. Let us all work hard together for this,” he added.
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