Duterte tells Roxas: Stand on track record, stop smearing rivals

Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II INQUIRER FILE PHOTOS

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Mayor Rodrigo Duterte fired off on Tuesday, a criticism against the camp of Liberal Party presumed candidate Mar Roxas for allegedly trying to boost the latter’s candidacy at the expense of other presumed presidential candidates.

He cited the recent posts of Philip Lustre Jr. as among examples of the demolition jobs against him, Vice President Jejomar Binay and Senator Grace Poe.

Duterte has declared he will not run while Poe is now expected to make an announcement on Wednesday (Sept. 16). Binay had been very open about his desire to become the country’s next president.

“In previous articles he (Lustre) wrote, he labeled Binay a thief, Senator Grace Poe an upstart, and called me the Philippines’ version of Cambodian monster Pol Pot and made fun of my thick Visayan accent when I speak Tagalog,” Duterte said in a statement.

“One does not have to be a rocket scientist to understand that this PR man is promoting the candidacy of administration Presidential bet Mar Roxas,” said Duterte.

“Painting others black in order (for Roxas) to look white,” he said, has become “the name of the game on the social media, including mainstream media with pseudo-journalists writing and broadcasting lies to advance the interests of their political patrons.”

Duterte said he should not have minded it at all if the issues raised were legitimate because these would help voters to decide.

“I agree that all of us in public service are subject to intense scrutiny by the media and by our constituents, especially during the election season when political leaders must be vetted by the electorate,” he added.

Duterte said it was alright that Binay be compelled to address the issues of corruption against him, that Poe should enlighten the Filipino people on her real citizenship status or even to question him for the alleged human rights violations “in the process of turning Davao City from a former Killing Fields of Communist assassins to being one of the World Safest Cities today.”

But unfounded reports and lies, such as him having throat cancer, was malicious because it was clearly meant to prop up Roxas.

Amid allegations against his perceived opponents, Roxas, he said, was being presented as “white.”

“It is not right, however, when the focus of the scrutiny is just the perceived opponents of the administration Presidential bet, former Secretary Mar Roxas,” Duterte said, adding that “It is not fair to paint Binay, Poe and Duterte black just so Mar would appear white.”

He said if Roxas really wanted to be President, he must stand on what he had done, his record of government service, his competence and his plans for the country.

“Mar cannot stand on our carcasses badly mangled by his PR men just so he could reach his presidential ambitions,” Duterte said.

“I hold the Mar Roxas camp responsible for the actions of this PR man,” he added.

Duterte then urged Binay, Poe and Roxas to raise the level of their political campaign to give voters “an accurate picture of who they are and what they could do for the country.”

“Let us not corrupt our people’s mind and influence their political decision with lies. Let us show people who their prospective leaders really are, what their plans are and what future they could offer the future generations of Filipinos,” he said.

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