Former President Rodrigo Duterte delivers his speech during a Thanksgiving he hosted for the Armed Forces of the Philippines Council of the Sergeants Major in Malacañang on December 10, 2019. (File photo from KING RODRIGUEZ)
MANILA, Philippines — Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to separate Mindanao from the rest of the Philippines will not gain ground among Mindanaoans, Camiguin Governor Xavier Romualdo said on Sunday.
In an interview with INQUIRER.net, Romualdo explained the secession proposal from the former chief executive is not something that people of Mindanao want at the moment.
“I don’t think it will succeed. I don’t think people in Mindanao would go for it,” the governor said.
“Any sane person, I would say, na may tamang pag-iisip, alam naman na sobrang imposible naman iyan na mangyari” Romualdo observed.
(Any sane person, I would say, with proper reasoning, knows that it’s highly impossible for that to happen.)
He noted Mindanao folks see themselves as an “integral and indispensable part of the country.”
“After all, we are all Filipinos,” the governor stressed.
During a press conference on January 31, Duterte had said they are looking to start a movement for a “separate and independent Mindanao.”
He had cited little to no progress in the islands “after so many presidents.”
But Romualdo noted this claim has no basis in fact.
He also said Duterte’s view is ironic since he himself became president in 2016 before being succeeded by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
Prior to the presidency, Duterte was mayor of Davao city in Mindanao.
The governor emphasized if Mindanao indeed lacked progress in the past years, it should be Duterte’s administration that must be held accountable.
“It has no basis. They’re just causing trouble,” the governor said in Filipino, referring to Duterte’s statements.
He likewise said Duterte’s public proposal for secession is already treading the line of sedition and the former president may be held criminally liable for such remarks.