THE word war between Liberal Party presidential candidate Mar Roxas and rival Rodrigo Duterte continues as the former retorted the Davao City Mayor’s insult by saying at least, he serves the people well.
Duterte criticized his erstwhile pal for sending farm equipment to El Niño-torn provinces at the height of the election fever. “What does that make of Roxas?” said the feisty mayor.
Speaking to reporters in Misamis Oriental on Wednesday, Roxas then reiterated his question to Duterte: “Alam n’yo, itong si Duterte, wala na siyang masabi kung ‘di tungkol sa akin. Ano ba ang kanyang plataporma? Ang kanyang plataporma ba, ang gagawin niya sa bansa natin ay icri-criticize kung ano ang mga nagawa ko?”
“Eh ako may mga nagawa ako eh. May mga natulungan ako, may kongkretong patunay sa serbisyo, sa malinis, sa maayos na serbisyo na nagawa ko. Kaya hindi ko na siya pinapansin eh,” he added.
The friendship between the two presidential aspirants soured after Duterte accused Roxas’ camp of spreading rumors that his former wife was suffering from throat cancer.
The verbal tussle heated up as Duterte said he would slap Roxas after dismissing the crime-buster image of the tough-talking mayor as a myth.
In a provincial sortie on Tuesday, Roxas answered Duterte’s claim that the former “broke down” and failed to deliver as the chief of the Interior and Local Government department during the aftermath of the deadly Supertyphoon Yolanda last November 2013.
Roxas also slammed Duterte for making irrelevant claims against him just so the mayor can steal the spotlight.
“Ay siguro naman itong si kaibigan kong si Rody ay nagiging saling-pusa na naman, na kung saan ay naghahanap ng paraan para makabalik sa pagiging kabahagi ng usapin,” he said.
“Tayo—ang programa, plataporma, saan natin dadalhin ang bansa ang ating pinag-uusapan. Kung ang kanyang plataporma ay si Mar Roxas lang, ‘yan ang nagpapakita, patunay na wala naman talagang laman ang kanyang programa.”
But the former Interior secretary said he finds the insults of Duterte against him surprising.
“Tinuring ko siyang kaibigan. Kung ano-anong mga kasinungalingan, kung ano-anong mga kabaligtaran, kabaluktutan, ang sinasabi niya tungkol sa akin. ‘Di ko alam kung saan nagmumula ito at hindi ko na siya papatulan pa,” said Roxas.