President Rodrigo Duterte. AP FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines— The nation just has to “get used to it.”
Several Senators had this to say about President Duterte’s quip about declaring martial law in response to Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s comments on the tagging of several judges as drug suspects.
“We might not agree, but that’s his style. Sometimes we will say it’s appropriate, sometimes we say it’s not appropriate. But he’s fighting a war. His focus is on the drug war. He’s passionate about the drug war. So why make a mountain out of a mole hill?” said Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte’s defeated running mate in the May elections.
He said the President just meant that the country might end up needing a martial law declaration if the drug problem is not addressed.
“He wants to communicate to people that ‘the worst that can happen is martial law, and that I don’t want it to have to come to that point.’ And he feels like shouting it out instead of saying [speaks in a soft voice], ‘My countrymen, instead of having to declare martial law, let us arrest them now,’” Cayetano told reporters Thursday.
The lawmaker said people have been too conscious of political correctness when “we’re fighting a different kind of war.”
READ: Duterte threatens to declare martial law if SC thwarts drug war
Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto said the nation should learn how to “auto-delete the colorful parts” of Duterte’s language, adding that some of his shocking lines shouldn’t be taken as policy.
“The best coping mechanism is not to let his curses get in the way of studying the causes he is fighting for,” Recto said in a statement.
“His language is colorful. There is a mix of sarcasm, and that is part of his stagecraft. This is separate from the state policies he is pursuing,” he said.
Still, Recto advised the President and his other officials to have “finesse” in their speech.
“Words can move a nation, incite people, disturb the peace, and make the political temperature rise. So people wielding large bullhorns should exercise caution in what they say,” he said.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson reiterated what he had said on Duterte’s recent statements: “Don’t take it seriously.”
“By now, we should already know how to read between the lines when the President speaks. Isn’t it true that sometimes he would say something that shouldn’t be interpreted literally?” he said in an interview. CDG/rga
READ: Senators shrug off martial law threat