Duterte says no to martial law despite herculean drug problem

President Rodrigo Duterte assures troops of 5th Infantry Division that they have his support during his visit at Melchor F. Dela Cruz in Isabela on September 17. ROLANDO MAILO/PPD

ALTHOUGH the bureaucracy has been infested with illegal drug activities, President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday said he would not declare martial law.

“Kasi ang droga, within government ang away ngayon. Paano ko makaya ito? Hindi naman ito madampot at patayin ko. Wala iyan eh. Ayaw ko naman mag-martial law,” Duterte told the troops during his speech at the 9th Infantry Division in Pili, Camarines Sur.

The President asked troops not to “abandon” the fight against illegal drugs and the country if the problem would “outlast” him.

“If that problem outlasts me for whatever reason–mamatay ako…Sinabi ko sa inyo sa official, do not abandon your country. Solbahin n’yo problema na iyan kasi sisirain mo Pilipinas,” he said.

The chief executive reiterated his earlier statements, saying, the drug problem would destroy the next generation.

“This will destroy your children o iyong mga apo ninyo and the next generation… They are not safe anymore,” he said.

As of September 11, the body count in the administration’s war on drugs reached almost 3,000, in just over two months since the President assumed office.