Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles. MARC JAYSON CAYABYAB/INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO
Now, it’s the New York Times that is destabilizing the Duterte administration by publishing a profile of the Philippine leader as an emerging strongman, according to an ally of the President.
Davao City Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles on Thursday said the Times article was an attempt to “destabilize and topple down the government” so that “enemies of the State” may grab power.
“New York Times owes our country, our people and our President an explanation and an apology,” Nograles said in statement.
The Times article, “Becoming Duterte: The Making of a Philippine Strongman” by Richard Paddock, traced Duterte’s life and career as a “killer-savior”—from the beatings he received as a boy to his rise as one of the country’s toughest mayors to being a foul-mouthed president.
The article was published also by the Inquirer on Thursday.
“The spin doctors are on overtime to put in disrepute the President of our republic in a desperate attempt to take over. They are going international because they know that our people know better and nobody would believe them,” Nograles said.
Nograles, chair of the House appropriations committee, said the Duterte profile was “nothing more than a rebooted, rehashed, exaggerated remake of a movie script.”
‘Calculated move’
“This is obviously a calibrated and calculated move by enemies of the State to force themselves into power in an undemocratic manner. Only rich and powerful enemies have the means to operate in this manner,” he said.
Nograles said the details in the story were all “obviously fed” by detractors of Mr. Duterte and not based on objective research by “hard-nosed journalists.”
“The writer made it appear that he interviewed a few people for the article but it is clear that he picked only parts of those interviews that were unfavorable to President Duterte and his people,” Nograles said.
“It destroyed the time-honored balance required in journalism and recklessly tried to damage the interests of the Philippines,” he added.
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, a fierce critic of Duterte, was among the people interviewed by the writer, who also extensively quoted the President’s brother and sister.
“Curiously,” Nograles said, “the malicious article came at a time when there was this report from New York City by Filipina journalist Ethel Cantor Constantino, a former Davao broadcaster, that intense fund-raising activities are being undertaken in that particular American area.”
“The report from New York made public online did mention of Philippine opposition figures raising money to bring down the Duterte administration,” he said.
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