FULL TEXT: Duterte speech at Camp General Vicente Lukban in Samar

President Rodrigo Duterte. MALACAÑANG FILE PHOTO

PRESIDENT RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE’S SPEECH
DURING HIS TALK TO THE STORMTROOPERS
8th Infantry Division Covered Court, Camp General Vicente Lukban
Barangay Maulong, Catbalogan City, Samar
August 8, 2016

Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Secretary Arthur Tabaquero, General Ricardo Visaya, Lieutenant General Eduardo Año; Major General Jet Belarmino; the officers and men and women of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, my fellow workers in government, my beloved countrymen.

I am happy that I visit you today. I purposely flew in from Davao, I was late because iyong eroplanong sakyan namin, medyo sira at naghintay pa ako ng mahiram na iba. So I arrived late, but just the same I said I’m happy to share this moment with you, to meet you personally and your officers para sabihin sa inyo na ang Republika ng Pilipinas, the machinery of government nandiyan sa tabi at likod mo.

And I would like you to know personally now, what I have done. Kasi noong pumunta ako ng AFP Medical Center, I was there for a visit and yet it was not planned, and I’m happy that I thought of it actually because I learned pagdating doon, I was a bit—hindi naman galit but hindi ako komportable to learn the many things that you would need to survive.

So iyong mga equipments, MRI wala kayo. And any hospital even the Sampaloc Hospital – little hospitals here have it. It’s critical for survival. And the Baric, which I was about to use because it has something to do with blood vessels and circulation, mas importante iyon kasi you extract late. If there is fighting going on for the day and you’re not able to really carry the men out of the battlefront, may sugat medyo ano iyan, the danger of gangrene is always there. Loss of life, blood.

So, lahat noong kailangan ninyo and even your hospital, iyong lumang building ninyo ay—pati iyong drainage bumabalik na. A hospital is a hospital. Ano yung mag-iikot na iyong germs, so I decided to give you one new building, but I said do not destroy the old building; just have it a refit so that we can go on with the drainage and plumbing things there. Marami akong binigay. And that night, I was happy because nandiyan si Secretary, iyong Budget si Ben Diokno. And every time that the Commanding Officer, iyong hospital director, would say “we need this,” I would look at the direction of Ben Diokno and he would nod “yes.”

So all in all, the government of the Republic of the Philippines, the people, gave about 5 billion. And with that, I also have requested Secretary Lorenzana to make the arrangement because I’m giving up the Presidential plane, reconvert it into an air ambulance and I want it at par. Mayroon siguro dalawang Fokker pa diyan, hayaan mo na iyong next presidente maghanap ng eroplano na kaniya, to convert into, mga mamadalian.

So you have, we’ll have about so many planes for the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Tutal ako, komportable na ako sa PAL, pati itong Cebu Pacific. Matagal namang walang nahulog diyan, so okay na siguro iyong mga eroplano nila. I’m comfortable with just riding commercial flights. Sometimes, I can use a jet plane, a small one, kung may panggasolina. I just pay the gasoline, air, pati iyong operational cost.

So iyong lahat na makatulong sa inyo, inyo na. And I’m happy to note, after I was briefed, that the situation is very good. It’s also at par, medyo tabla-tabla iyong ratings ninyo with the rest of the Infantry Divisions all over the country. We have suffered slight ano dito sa Mindanao, lalo na sa region ko, matindi pa rin sila. And that may be as well, historical.

Nagsu-survive kasi sila diyan. Alam mo kung bakit? Kasi iyong extortion nila nandiyan lahat. Banana, mining, so they thrive there because they can get a— they are already into extortion. I used to call them revolutionary tax, but napundi ako nitong—I said, to just show good faith. And I know that iyong iba, hindi nila gusto that I said a ceasefire. Because my job as a President is not to look for fight and to allow people die. My job as a President is to seek peace with everybody so that we can move on to the next generation, para iyong generation after us, wala nang problema sa insurrection and they can go anywhere throughout the country and develop the Republic for their own—yung mga anak nila. Alam mo tayo, whether we like it or not, we will be here within the next almost forever. One hundred years from now, hindi na itsura nito, but you will be here. Why? Kaya nga because of our children, whether it is really a girl or a boy. We are conscious na manganak tayo, mayroon tayong maiwan ‘pag wala na tayo sa mundong ito. And the same rule applies for the next, our sons and daughters. So, our efforts now would be a continuation of our existence in this planet.

And that is why whether you believe it in God or not, you’d believe na you are here, that’s why there is the peculiar thing called the soul. If it’s not on a metaphysical form, or a spiritual form, then it goes by the genealogy ng ating – ikaw, iyong anak mong lalaki, mag-anak iyan, mag-anak. Iyong babae mag-anak, even if it’s a girl, maybe a change of name, but the genes are there forever. And that is why for the nonbelievers, that is really what you would call, the “continuity of the race.”

Kaya nga tayo gusto ng peace. Eh mukhang ayaw nila, mukhang gusto, but still I would insist that we talk, with or without Sison, or with or without the politburo, we can talk to—masasabi ko sa inyo, nasabi ko sa komunista, and I repeat, I’ve said it in Palacan when I visited the dead soldiers there, ni hindi kayo makahawak ng isang barangay 24 oras. You cannot win an election. As a matter of fact, in Davao City, you had candidates winning from the Left because nasa partido ko kayo. And we are lording it over for the last 23 years. But alam mo, they also contributed something to the peace of this country.

Eh, Davao is Exhibit A because I was able to—you know, just try to—usap na tayo. I hit hard against the drugs and the criminals. Nakapaghinga yung tao. If you have been to Davao city, look at it. Used to be a very, troubled, and maraming namatay doon pulis, pati sa—you used—I was already around when Martial Law was there, and I was a prosecutor, fiscal ako. And we used to lose, I said one, two, three – minimum of two, policeman or soldier, pati mga colonels a day. So, sino ma-– with that kind of background and horrific experience, I would just like to talk to everybody. I am ready to talk to the MI, to the MN. I’ll be flying to Jolo within the next few days. And if I can just see Misuari or emissary.

I would like to—the talks to begin because ang panel ko, ready na. Then, again, I said we cannot— itong komunista, kung nakikinig kayo, we’ve been at war with this government for 45 years. Do you want to fight another 45 years? At napundi ako doon sa Panacan kasi mayroong mga tama, pati iyong punta ko sa ano, AFP Medical Center, may iba doon bulag na, iyong ibang may tama. Wallop talaga ng land mines. Sabi ko nga, and I’d like to repeat this statement. “When it is into your favor, you want the Geneva Convention. When it is not, then you invoke on it. Mahuli kayo, then you file cases against the soldiers, and yet iyong mga truck na pabalik sa kampo, may mga civilian nakisakay, or the family of the soldier itself or the soldiers, binibira ninyo ng land mine. Kaya the other night, If I hear again, mind you, kindly listen to me.

Hindi ako nagyayabang, wala akong karapat-dapat magyabang. I am just giving you—I will not plead for it because I am the President, I’ll just state the repeat: We want peace, lahat kayo, pamilya ninyo, but do not use that land mine. Pag may narinig ako na isang putok, goodbye. At kayong peace panels, umuwi na kayo dito. Huwag ninyong—salangin—waste your money there and talk nonsense. ‘Yan, hindi ako nagwa-warning, I am not giving you an ultimatum even, I am just saying na kung puputok uli ang land mine which is prohibited by the Geneva Convention, I will forgo with the peace talks and forget about it. Kasi hindi naman lahat ng panahon mong—always, gobyerno pa, kneeling down is impossible.

And itong mga—second issue is droga, it is destroying our country. So when I was the mayor, I said I was the whipping boy, extrajudicial killing, ito si Duterte sa Davao, berdugo. Fine. And I just ignore them. Bahala na, but wala akong pakialam diyan.

You know, when I won as President, pati ako natulala. Never thought that it would reach that number. We are now 600 addicts, pushers and users. Kayong mga NGO mag-sinabi, “eh sakit iyan eh, medical—”. Oh sige, sabi ko sa pulis “deliver ninyo iyang 600 thousand sa kanila, medical man kaya yan.” Eh pagamutin ninyo. Mas marunong kasi kayo. It is not a medical issue, it will cost a medical issue because of your crime, selling and posessing shabu.

I repeat, take off na ako, sabi noong piloto, hindi raw puwede mag—ano, mag-take off, … wala na. Wala na ako maka-lecture sa inyo.

It has to stop. It will destroy our country. Mga anak natin, anak ninyo, wala diyan sa harap mo. The overseas workers nagpakamatay doon, ang asawa dito, ang asawang babae doon sa Qatar. ‘Di, nagpapahirap sila padala ng pera tapos ang anak nila malulong o victim of the criminals. Lalo na ang shabu. So, let us—hindi ‘to sa bayan na ito, I don’t know about the other precedents, everybody just follow the law, follow the rules, do not cause agony or disaster to your fellowmen, wala tayong problema.

Ako ho ay trabahante lang ninyo, suweldado and I will work. But you start to—you mess up around, kayong mga mayaman, pay your taxes. I will be announcing formally, ‘cause I would like to have the list completed, lahat kayong mga milyonaryong mayayaman dito sa Pilipinas, pay your taxes or I’ll invite you for questioning. Hindi ko madala, padalhan kita doon ng pulis tatanungin kung bakit hindi ka nagbabayad ng—eh ganoon na ang gusto ninyo, that’s the way that you understand it. Payaman kayo nang payaman, milyonaryo, lahat ng Dewey dyan boulevard puro online, pati iyong mga barangay sa likod.

How am I supposed to protect the young there? How do I collect the right taxes? By cheating government, you’re destroying the Filipino people. It won’t happen during my watch. For the six years, kung maawa ang Diyos sa akin, paabutin Niya ako. Huwag ninyong gawain iyan sa akin. It must be the interest, first and last, wala nang first and second. The first and only interest is government interest, nothing else matter.

Hindi na ako makatagal, I’d like to thank you for your warm welcome. I’m happy by your achievements here and I hope you would continue little bit of sacrifice pero ‘wag kayong—I will be with you, beside you, sa likod mo. Protektado kayo sa panahon ko.

Maraming salamat po.

Read here all of President Duterte’s speeches delivered during his visit to various military camps across the country.