FULL TEXT: Duterte speech at Camp Edilberto Evangelista in CDO

President Rodrigo Duterte raises the spectre of martial law if Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno would not stop telling him how to do his job. Duterte speaks to soldiers at the Philippine Army's Camp Evangelista in Cagayan de Oro City on Aug. 9, 2016. (PHOTO BY JIGGER JERUSALEM/INQUIRER)

President Rodrigo Duterte raises the spectre of martial law if Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno would not stop telling him how to do his job. Duterte speaks to soldiers at the Philippine Army’s Camp Evangelista in Cagayan de Oro City on Aug. 9, 2016. (PHOTO BY JIGGER JERUSALEM/INQUIRER)

PRESIDENT RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE’S SPEECH
DURING HIS TALK TO THE MEN
OF THE 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION, PHILIPPINE ARMY

4ID Gymnasium, Camp Edilberto Evangelista
Patag, Cagayan De Oro City
August 9, 2016

General Ricardo Visaya, Lieutenant General Eduardo Año, Lieutenant General Rey Leonardo Guerrero, Major General Benjamin Madrigal, Police Chief Superintendent Noel Constantino and Rolando Felix, the officers and enlisted men of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, mga mahal kong kababayan.

Let me explain the reason why we are here in this place today. You know, ang isang bayan has to have the fighting force. Mainly really to protect the integrity of the country and to establish order, hand in hand with the police which is more on the civilian side.

The duty of a President, kagaya ko, is not really to wage war against our citizens, Filipinos, but rather and trabaho ko, maghanap ng paraan na sana tayo—na walang—walang conflict walang away at wala namang namamatay ng bala na binibili rin natin para sa ating sariling tao, pumatay.

It pains me deeply, to really do that: to sign papers documents, to bring in more bullets and bombs just to kill Fillipinos. Pero alam mo, much as we would like really to be the shining armor of peace, there are things which we have to take care of. One is that there is a violent group, the CPP/NPA/NDF. Tapos gusto nilang kunin ang authority not by election, but by arms struggle. Alam mo, nagkakaintindihan tayo dito in matters of paano yung ideology mo? Kasi kagaya ko, I’m just a son of a migrant from the Visayas dito sa Mindanao. At ako rin dumaan ng hirap at ako naman kami noon 1956. I could still remember even this smell of the wet land na tinayuan ng tatay ko ng bahay. He was thinking that it was really—tubig eh, and yet at time, Davao was already titled in so many names even before the Christians came. Kasi walang kasalanan, nobody—because ang Bureau of Lands noon, sa Maynila.

In the 50s, late 40s, wala naman tao dito, so binigay sa kanila and it turned out that pag dumating yung Land of Promise, nagpuntahan doon, ang lahat ng lupa doon, may-ari na. But of course, yung mga Espanyol pati itong mga Amerikano, gave themselves the most of that, the fat of the land, ika nga. Well, meron tayong sentimyento but it cannot translate into violence.

Ang akin dito is gusto ko lang makausap sila and if there is still chance for us to have to peace, eh umpisa ko noon ng—sa komunista, even before I took my oath of office, I sent already to Dureza and Bello to talk to the Communist and to Sison. They were successful except for a few hitches which was everything was going smooth until nagalit ako, kasi itong mga komunista continue to use land mine. Wala sana akong problema kung tabla ito, then I could order the Defense Department na magtanim ng bala—ah—magtanim ng explosives, pasabugin natin yang bukid na ’yan. But we are not allowed to do that because we are convenor and a signatory sa Geneva Convention. It is the International Law. And as a government, we have to honor that agreement. Otherwise, you are not a responsible government.

The duty of a President, kagaya ko, is not really to wage war against our citizens, Filipinos, but rather and trabaho ko, maghanap ng paraan na sana tayo—na walang—walang conflict walang away at wala namang namamatay ng bala na binibili rin natin para sa ating sariling tao, pumatay.

So nung—while the talks were going on and was expecting the best of the results. Eh, ilang bibisita-bisita ko sa kampo, nag-declare na ako ng ceasefire to show good faith na “Adre, o, mag usap tayo, ito ‘yung baraha ko.” Binigay ko na kaagad and I was expecting the communist to follow suit but they did not. Okay lang sa akin. Until such time when I was covering the entire country going there, to this military camp and.. then getting the reports from the field that—namamatay yung—meron ako dun nakita niya and I don’t want to talk about it. Wala ng—carne norte yung mata, so tanong ako, bakit ganito?

Well, sa land mine, kaya pag-uwi ko sa Davao, the day after or about two days after, when I talked to the people there inside, nakaburol yung one, two, three na sundalo, sabi ko sa mga komunista, I’ve lifted the order, and if I hear, isang putok lang na land mine, namatay ang sundalo: Goodbye ang peace talks. I will order the representatives of the government to come home and to tell them: Forget about it.

Alam mo, they could not even hang on to one barangay in the entire country. May namamatay sa atin, eh that—natural yan eh. There is a conflict, there’s war. But itong mga komunista, masyadong high-handed kung ano, kaya ako napundi. Kasi ayaw nga mag-declare kaagad ng ceasefire. When I lifted the ceasefire, sabi pa kaagad nila, “sana mag-ceasefire kami kagabi.” Pati ako, … bobolahin mo ako ng ganun, kaya nung nagka-land mine, I said, long thereafter, sabi ko: “Isang putok na landmine, wala na.” So, giyera tayo. We’ve been at war with them for 45 years. There are a generation of them na lumaki na lang, namatay na, hindi na makabalik kasi yung pagpapakita sila sa—kapag matsambahan sila, eh di mapatay rin sila.

So para sa akin, kayo, we are not at the losing end. I have so many soldiers to provide you, if you want war. My casualties kami but we take care of our casualties. Kayo, hindi na kayo nananalo ng election. In Davao City, kung hindi sila sa ticket ko, then Left would never have won any seat. In the national, wala ni isa. In the previous generations, Claro Recto—yung mga intellectuals na Leftists din ng ano, nationalism yan, hindi yan Left.

Hindi political party kasi yang pinag-uusapan dito eh. They won because they were bright, and the Filipinos maybe thought that we need bright people in Congress. ‘Yan sila, di makahawak, wala naman silang ni taxation, sila pa nga actually extortion nga eh

They thrived in Mindanao, you know why? Because they—pinakamalaking ano nila: Taxation. They survive sa extortion money, so yan ang problema. Andoon yung banana plantations because of the climate, there’s no typhoon. The mining industry is thriving even if almost all of them have violated the law

Kaya nagwawala si Gina Lopez sa—secretary ng DENR. Nandoon lahat eh, porsyentuhan lang yan. Pati yang mga gold mine diyan, ang bayaran dito rin sa Maynila, transfer of money lang yan. Hindi naman nagkokolekta yung mga tax collector doon. Ano ko lang—ito bayad mo, some of the tax collector or the extortionist will go to them. Tapos yun bayad. So yan ang istorya natin diyan.

Tayo, ito namang sa Moro, MI (Moro Islamic Liberation Front), MN (Moro National Liberation Front). Just a little bit of history, long before the Spaniards came, long before they landed in Leyte, ang Mindanao was already Islam. Nauna eh, through Malaysia—from the Central Minda—Central Asia. Afghanistan, Pakistan, traveled all the way to—by land to Malaysia, then Indonesia umakyat dito. Long before Magellan landed, so when they—kawawa naman yang ating mga ninuno, because they were not armed with the gun powder and canons, and for the first time, they were scared of—‘tong putok, they surrendered except Lapu-Lapu of course, he killed Magellan.

Ngayon, ang hindi naintindihan kasi ng tao na baka this is just a rebellion of sorts in Mindanao. Actually, they’re trying to raise the issue of “sinong may-ari?” And of course, it’s not may-ari, but who was the first one to be there, with what religion? So because fundamentally, ang dala ng mga Espanyol: Roman Catholic, ayun, hanggang ngayon. From the Spaniards and to the Americans and to us. Kahit tayo, so sabi natin na “we understand the plight of the Moro.”

We would like to address the problem and we would also want just to share with you ang Mindanao. Huwag na ninyong paalisin ang Kristiyanos because you would need a miracle there. But tayong nandiyan sa gobyerno, we try to reach out for peace. And fortunately, for everybody, tayong lahat, Murad seems to be on talking terms. Jaafar agrees and maybe in a few days, I’d go to Jolo, if I cannot talk to Misuari because he has a warrant there for his arrest, then maybe, his representative just to send the message across. Para malaman ko ang dimension. So yun ang purpose natin sa gobyerno. We want peace, soldiers and all including the President. But we would not allow abuse sa ating mga tao.

NPA (New People’s Army), they kept on collecting taxes, ano ba talaga ang appeal ng NPA sa bukid? Bilib yung mga tao doon sa prinsipyo ni Karl Marx? Do they understand Karl Marx? Talaga bang mag-alam nilang sila Trotsky, the history of communism. Ayaw mo pang—ayaw mong mag-join sa amin. O patay ka. There’s nothing intellectual there, except by the brute of the bullet.

Kung tayo naman, I understand so, pero hindi yan pwede na—eh magganon sila, ito sige, kami bukas, ganun. Sino ka? Hindi ako magpapayag ganon because I have the burden of representing the Republic of the Philippines. I would not allow people to—kung kami-kami lang magkaibigan, okay siguro, medyo suplado, pero not in public, before the people of the Philippines, hindi ako sang-ayon ng ganon.

MI will just pray. MN, we keep on praying but we will never allow an inch of our territory taken from us. ‘Yung mag-gwardya ng Republic of the Philippines, and do it, sometimes we lose, sometimes we win, sometimes we die, sometimes we celebrate victory. I just saw the firearms that you have na-harness, you harvested so many firearms, dito mga M40 na.

In the long run, sinabi ko nga sa kanila, we can fight for 100 years. Wala talaga kayo makuha. Yung mga anak ninyo mga komunista hindi naka-uwi, di na nga naka-birthday yan sa anak nila. Mabuti pa yung sundalo ng Pilipinas, kung gusto niya. Hindi na maka—mga tatay ninyong mamatay, hindi na rin makauwi. Hindi mo nga alam kung pati ikaw, you’d live to see your daughter give birth to another added descendant sa buhay mo.

Kayo, I’m addressing myself to the communist. Medyo hindi naman ako napipika pero the way you—you bond around, so yan ang sitwasyon. Tayo peace. Kayo—ayaw natin ng giyera. Ako, I would never relish to see one soldier die. kung maari lang, kung maari. Kaya ako, I’d go out of my way talking, but there was limit, a parameter to that. And when we reach the boundaries and nothing happens. Then there’s going to be trouble, that’s it. There’s the equation. Period.

Now, I had a chance to visit the AFP Medical Center and huwag na lang yung bakit. But the—just my surprise is that I’m surprised to be your Commander-in-Chief. I am not experienced yet. This things crop up but this could be readily addressed by the Commander-in-Chief, but the lines seems to be blurd. Itong mga problema na ito, this cannot wait ‘yung travel-travel ng papel because this can really save lives. So wala kayo, meron kayong MRI, it’s better than CT scan a thousand times, better that an X-RAY. A Hyperbaric, that is a machine like ‘yung tangke na ipinapasok yung mga divers na nauna sa kanilang bubbles, the Bends kasi maka-ano ka, paunahin mo talaga yung bubbles mo. Overtake-an mo yan, you suffer the Bends. It’s a high pressure vacuum tank na ipasok ka diyan and the—ang circulation mo, would get better back to normal.

In the long run, sinabi ko nga sa kanila, we can fight for 100 years. Wala talaga kayo makuha.

In the treatment of injuries, kasi ang sundalo, in the heat of battle, we might not be able to extract you from the battlefield if you’re wounded immediately. So mag—ilang oras pa, and the the loss of blood and gangrene, kaya sabi ko, magbili tayo nito, nandiyan na rin, sabi ko bilihin natin yan.

Lithotripsy para sa—karamihan kayong mga sundalo, kidney, kidney. It’s either you are kulang sa tubig, sa hydration or asin, wanay sud-an, asin na lang. Asin o gulay, pag …(dialect)… kaya ako, pagalitin mo talaga, I can open you up and eat you in public, totoo. Kaya sabi ng ano,

But, then my cauterization. Cauterization, ano ‘to? What word? Cauterization. Itong mga heart patients, wala akong nakita masyadong—kaya mag-uyab-uyab ka ng lima, abah, kailangan mo talaga ‘to. Magmahal ka ng lima, maski saan-saan yung base, assigned ka, yun.

So I got all of these for you, because I thought… Now, nandito na ito, for life saving ‘tong mga to. At para masiguro ko na magamit ‘to at yung wounded talaga, needs to be transported here, I have requested the Secretary of Defense to reconfigure lahat ng mga Presidential planes na attached sa opisina ko. At least, sa pag-ano—gawin mo na lang na hospital, ambulances. Maski sa wounded na sundalo, pag kailangan niya itong Baric, lipad din yan. Never mind the cost, so meron kayong mga dalawa o I think, tat—dalawang eroplano: Isang jet, isang fokker.

Di ko na kailangan yan. Everytime, maglangoy na lang ako puntang Davao. No, no, really, I take the commercial flights. Eh ang security, medyo ano sila, okay man yan, kasi mabuti pa nga doon sa commercial, ini-inspection, eh. Tayo, diretso lang tayong pasok. Maya-maya, may pumasok doon na babae, hindi mo kilala. Sino ka ma’am? Mabuti pa yung sa PAL, pati—kinakapkap pa. I do not have a—yung mga—tong bakokang diyan sa—. You can have it, for your use.

Then, let me talk about drugs. Kasi, sandali lang, pagbigyan lang ninyo ako. Sabi nila, this will create a Constitutional crisis. Tama, walang problema yan. Ganito yan eh, si—itong nag-surrender ngayon, eh medyo, this might be unsettling to hear sa kanya na mga judges niya, sabit. At sabi niya, di ko alam kung bakit ganito, yung ibang judges na nandiyan, patay na o napaalis na sa pwesto for ignorance of the law, and maybe for graft and corruption. Bakit? I just wanted to impress upon the public na noon pa, alam na namin ang negosyo ninyo. Since your name is there, leave it and I will publish it the way it is there. Bakit ko i-excempt yung mga namatay? Eh kagaya nung nakuha na precursor sa Apayao na nilibing. Tapos sabi nung kapatid niya, dalawang taon naman namatay an—kapatid ko yung nagdala nito, inilibing niya.

See, so gusto ko malaman ng tao kung sinong nagtamin doon. At hindi lang ‘yung mga pulis doon. I want the Philippines to know. Who are the judges? Who are the soldiers? Who are the police, generals, pati yung mga nasa baba na sangkot sa droga? Pati yung patay na? Korek. At saka pag namatay yan sila, hindi naman sila magtawag sa amin. You do not call the PNP headquarters na yung masabit ng anak ko o kapatid ko na nangamatay na, nasagasaan o diabetes. So, why should be bothered, pag napasok yung pangalan mo diyan, it’s not—personally, it’s not mine, I just the entered the presidency two months back. It is the work overtime of the many years that they are there.

Hindi mapasok yung pangalan mo diyan kung—sabihin lang nag-politika? Because they have to be revalidated. And itong sa PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency), si General Lapeña, he’s very good, he was my RD (regional director), he was my chief of police noon, CD (central director). Kaya ko siya nilagay diyan kasi talagang may tiwala ako, just like Delfin Lorenzana. Eh, matagal kami magkaibigan sa Davao. Kilala ko sila and I do not think that they would prepare a list with lies there. At hindi gagawain ni Isidro sa akin ‘yan. Yung sabi ni ano—ang problema nito, tayo Filipino ha, kayong mga sundalo, alam ninyo yan. Sabi niya, huwag mag-surrender kung walang warrant of arrest. True. Anong sinabi ko, kayong mga huwes, mag-report kayo sa Supreme Court. Wala akong pinaaresto, Chief Justice. Sabi ko kayong mga pulis, magreport kay Bato. I never accused anybody, except to read their names, na sangkot sa droga. Where? What? How? When did it happen? Never. It was not an accusatorial utterance, they are rather it was, in consonance with my duty as the President of the Philippines to let everybody know, sino ‘yung mga tao sa tabi-tabi mo, to spare you the agony and grief of a child being raped, of a child na ginasto mo, ng mga kababayan natin nagpakamatay ng trabaho nandoon sa Middle East, yung lalaki sa Qatar, ‘yung sa Dubai ang babae only to hear na yung anak nila, nalulong sa droga and the wasted years of toil and sweat, tapos yung isa nabiktima. Yung isang lalaki nalulong, yung isang anak, ni-rape inakyat sa kwarto.

You know, Chief Justice, there was slaughter going on, and mind you, you were appointed by the government, there in your office as a Chief Justice at the time na walang ginawa ang gobyerno. And why would you wait for the warrant of arrest. There are now 600,000, hundreds of thousands of Filipinos addicted and victim. Maghingi ka ng warrant, Madame Chief Justice, you must be joking, you must be joking, dalawa tayo abogado. Kayong lahat sa Supreme Court, do you know how long it would take a government to secure a warrant of arrest? Ako, Fiscal ako noon, the shortest time that I can work on, puwera na lang kung—let this case be filed, but when you study the case, by the thousands, by the hundreds, everyday. How can you file the case immediately without being unfair also to the guy who is being accused? Pinag-aralan namin yan, Chief Justice. So fiscal ako noon, it is not that easy to get a warrant.

Pagdating sa amin, pag-abot—pagdating ng abogado, I would say: Fiscal, we would like a postponement because this is the first time that I’ve read the affidavits and the witnesses’ testimony. Ganun yan, 600, pagdating sa korte niyan: Hearing. People of the Philippines versus Rodrigo Duterte for murder. Ngayon, “Fiscal,” sabi ng judge, “Your honor, ready.” Affidavit, wala na kaming interview niyan, kung anong binigay dun sa pulis, yun na yun, tanong ako, doon na.

“O council,” “Your honor, we asked for the postponement to study the case. Invariably it is granted.” Madam Justice, magtanong ka na lang, abogado ka eh. Do not tell me na hindi ka dumaan ng pagka-abogado mo. You must have practiced a bit, pagdating niyan, next hearing, “Your honor,” assuming they’re on bail, “Your honor, client ko, may lagnat, ito yung medical certificate, maski kanino kunin, maski peke, tatanggapin ‘yan.

Then the next, “Your honor,” several postponements. One single case in the Republic of the Philippines for the warrant to issue is, ‘a minimum of two months, three months.’ Pagdating sa korte, madame justice, would take forever. Pag natalo, aakyat yan sa court of appeals, it would shit there for about two years. Sa inyo sa Supreme Court, tell me, what was the fastest decision that you made in criminal cases?

You know, Chief Justice, there was slaughter going on, and mind you, you were appointed by the government, there in your office as a Chief Justice at the time na walang ginawa ang gobyerno. And why would you wait for the warrant of arrest. There are now 600,000, hundreds of thousands of Filipinos addicted and victim. Maghingi ka ng warrant, Madame Chief Justice, you must be joking, you must be joking, dalawa tayo abogado.

It is not strange to us on—sabihin, at last ma-publish. After ten years na-convict rin. Now, you are asking for a Warrant of Arrest for 600,000 Filipinos? In the meantime, ‘yung bangag, anong gawin mo? Let them stay there? What? To resume their criminal activities? To slaughter again? To rape? Eh ‘nung isang araw, nagchop-chop ng tao yung mga anak.

Ma’am, huwag tayong magbolahan, and do not force the issue. I respect your comments but it is a—how would I call it? It’s a rigmarole to me. Alam ko, alam ko na alam mo eh, huwag kayong mag—itong isa pa, just because kayo ang Supreme Court. You order me, I will not follow you, orderan mo ako, bahala kayo diyan.

I will order the military and the police to save lives. I’m not saying that they should kill them. But in the meantime that you are projecting your juries there. There is crime on the streets, please, please, do not, sabi mo create a Constitutional issue. There will be. Pero huwag mo akong pasundin, but sinabi ko sa inyo, sana narinig ka ma’am, in this presidency of mine, wala akong dreams dito. But when I said, I will stake my honor, my life, and my presidency itself. Ito.

I can, I can retire to the—let go of the presidency tomorrow and be happy with my life. But I have a problem for my country because I was elected by 5 million Filipinos with a sheer margin of 6 million. Saan ka nakakita hindi nila ako kilala? Wala akong pera, wala akong makinarya, so saan ko kinuha yung 6 million? Na nagsabi na—because the messaging was there. Yung 6 million na hindi ako kilala, ang alam nila, I said there will be no corruption in government and rest assured. Ngayon na, sinasabi ko, itaya mo yan. There will be no corruption in this government and to honor, ano pa?

Sabi ko, drugs lahat ng mga anak ninyo, hindi na makauwi, kung hindi masaksak, mahold-up, and there was slaughter everyday and you are just interested in the Warrant of Arrest. Iparinig niyo kay ano yan, is that all? Maghintay sa Warrant of Arrest, in the meantime, crime is rampaging? O come on. Bago ka nag—six years yung dumaan, walang ginawa ‘yun.

[J]ust because kayo ang Supreme Court … You order me, I will not follow you, orderan mo ako, bahala kayo diyan.

Look what happened? Ako, two months lang ako dito. So, ikaw ang winarningan ko, hindi ako. Do not create a crisis because I will order everybody in the Executive Department not to honor you. Gusto mong prangkahan, eh nakialam kayo ng—may patay? Eh di pa-imbestigahan natin? Salvage? Hindi namin trabaho yan. Bakit ko tataliin yung tao kung gusto kong patayin, di barilin ko na lang isang beses sa ulo. Why do we waste time na…, you know long before pumasok kami, nag-create na kami ng intriga. Damputin namin ‘to, sabihin namin, “Yan si Lito, ‘yung nagturo sa iyo.” Pagdating kay Lito sabihin namin, “yung isa nagturo sa iyo.” That is what you really want. It is a legitimate game there, we plant intrigues para magpatayan yan sila.

What will be the purpose of government namin, ba’t—kung may pulis diyan, sipain, you’re wasting your time? Barilin mo sa ulo, tapos. You know ma’am, I’ve been mayor of Davao City for 23 years, and I’ve been in conflict with lot of criminals. The mere fact that they are into shabu, sira ang utak niyan, sira. Kaya invariably, ang paranoia, you better ask the doctor there. Paranoid yan sila. May naghanap sa kanila, ang asawa niyan nangangaliwa, kaya pinapatay nila yung mga ano, they are crazy. You must realize that.

Kaya sinasabi na bakit ah classic na pagdating ng pulis, patay. Ma’am, yung mga pulis, pag naglabas yan, hindi naman yang gago, mag-solo lakad ‘yan. There always three or four with them. So kung lumalaban ito, ‘yung isa, naka-may confrontation, yung mga pulis, naka-posisyon na yan. Naturalmente pagka, any hostile, ang order ko sa pulis, pag may magbunot ng ganyan, barilin mo, huwag mong hintayin na, paglabas niyan, ano pala, apple. But you want my policemen to gamble with their lives. Self preservation, kung namatay ‘yang pulis, may pamilya rin ‘yan. Bakit tingnan ninyo, ‘yung pulis sa Magsaysay, Municipality of Magsaysay, Davao del Sur. Tapos ‘yung isang pulis tinamaan, I don’t know how many policemen were—died when they’re also in the fight against war. Do not be too—ano sa—well, kasi ang tingin niyo, pulis ganun-ganon, eh noon ‘yun, kaya pati dito, pulis kasali. Kung judge, he was not handling drug cases, ma’am, kamali ka. Akala ko ba, you must be—to be there, you have to be seasoned. Tawag diyan, “Pre, pakitawag yung kaibigan mong judge.”

Hind naman sila mag-ano, ganun rin yan. Hindi dadating ‘yang pangalan nila, walang personal, hindi naman kilala ng pulis yan. They’ll say na, you’re surprised na dumating yung—‘to—hindi dadating yun, pag kita mo yung nasa pangalan. Kaya yung mga pangalan, kita mo mga Mayor, kita mo nakaharap sa camera rin, parang tala-tala. Yun oh, pawis na—wala kang—.

Ngayon, eh bakit, intelligence lang yan, bakit mo basahin yan? Then ikaw, ikaw ang Kingpin diyan sa judiciary, ako presidente. Ako may trabaho, ikaw wala. Walang mga judges nagpa-patrol ng daan. Walang mga sherrif ninyo na naghuhuli. ‘Yan ang mabigat na problema ko, na-inherit ko sa dumadaan, pati yung gobyerno na naglagay sa iyo diyan sa Supreme Court.

Please, huwag mo akong orderan, hindi ako gago. If this continues, pigilan mo ako, di sige. Pag nagwala na or would you rather that I will declare martial law. Pinapatay ang Pilipino, I grieve for the so many women raped, men killed, infants raped, tapos ipitin mo ako.

I have to clean. Siguro Ma’am, I can give you an idea, pagka binilisan lang yang federalism at malinis ko sa droga ang Pilipinas, I am ready to retire. Kung ma-ready yang federalism by two years from now, three years from now, I will give way and I tell you, I am good for retirement. Wala akong ano diyan sa presidente-presidente. Matagal na kasi akong mayor, pareho lang eh. Except that the country is much bigger, mas maraming akong—ito, mga may duties to the troops of the Republic of the Philippines. Kayong mga sundalo, do not be—diyan lang kayo, Pilipino kayo, manood kayo, sino yung tama? Kung ako ang tama, di patalsik niyo ako. But isipin ninyo ang problema, madala ba ng Warrant of Arrest.

Kayo nakatikim naman kayo magdemanda, ilang years na yan diyan sa ano. The sheer number of cases cannot be absorbed by the ordinary judge na matanda and the prosecutor. Pwede lang yan sila kung bata pa, kagaya ko nung fiscal ako, I really write my resolutions; stating the case will be filed because one, two, three four, recommendation, ganun yan.

Please go to reality. Huwag ka masyadong doon sa itaas, and besides I said, if the policemen and the military guys doing cases against drugs and in the performance of their duties, I will protect them. Nobody, but nobody will go to jail. Bahala na sabi ko, I will not—magkakaroon tayo ng problema sa Republic of the Philippines. I have my oath, I will honor the Constitution, I will defend the Constitution… but huwag kang maghanap ng, tawag sa Bisaya? Bikel, do not create the conflict there because hindi tayo magkasundo.

And to the troops, maintain your loyalty to the flag and to the Constitution. I do not want you to nurture love or loyalty sa isang tao lang. I do not need it actually. Kung magdating ang panahon, we go into a crossroad, oh, you decide, you decide, pero ako, hindi ako magsunod diyan. And please, please, please, please do not create a confrontation to Constitutional war, talo tayong lahat diyan

Maraming salamat po.


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

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