AFTER earlier threatening to destroy them, President Duterte on Tuesday welcomed some of the country’s “oligarchs” and influential businessmen to Malacañang.
Mr. Duterte, a self-styled socialist, presided over the oath-taking ceremony for the new sets of officers of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECP), Philippine Franchise Association and Philippine Exporters Confederation.
After he had earlier expressed his disdain for oligarchs and rich people who did not pay the correct taxes, Mr. Duterte on Tuesday appeared to have had a change of heart, sounding friendly to the members of the four business groups whose cooperation he sought in pursuing his economic agenda.
“I know that you are here… because of one desire and that is because we are Filipinos and we would like to see our country move ahead to the next generation,” the President told the businessmen.
“So help me here because I am trying to create the environment… to do business, especially in Mindanao,” he said. “I hope to hand over, whoever is my successor, the imponderables of life, I would like to hand to her or to him a government that is in order.”
Two weeks ago, Mr. Duterte named businessman Roberto V. Ongpin as an oligarch from the Marcos martial law years through succeeding administrations. This resulted in Ongpin losing his electronic gaming license and the closure of his company Philweb.
Mr. Duterte then threatened to name other oligarchs.
But on Tuesday in his speech, Mr. Duterte was cordial. He briefly explained his administration’s war on illegal drugs that had turned bloody and his frustration over the endemic corruption in government.
He said the aim of the drug war was to save the youth and succeeding generations from the scourge of illegal drugs.
Despite his tough guy image, Mr. Duterte maintained that “I would be the last person in this planet to do an unfair thing.”
“I would never want to hurt anybody or (their) family,” he said.
As for the corruption, he said he may soon opt to name in public the government officials who continue with their corrupt ways, including those he had recommended to his predecessor, former President Benigno S. Aquino III.
He said the public should not have to worry about corrupt government officials, “because they ought to be out.”
“Looking at it now, there seems to be no loyalty when it is money that is involved, and we cannot hope to progress really,” he said.