How things can change in a month: On March 8, 2017, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte and then Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismael Sueno (left, front row) were all smiles as they posed for a photo with the officers and members of the Philippine Councilors League (PCL) during the 10th PCL National Congress at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Duterte fired Sueno on Apr. 3, 2017, citing loss of trust and confidence. (RICHARD MADELO/Presidential Photo)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte stood by his decision to fire Interior Secretary Ismael Sueno due to corruption allegations raised against the erstwhile head of the Department of Interior and Local Governments.
In an interview during his visit to the Western Command in Palawan on Thursday, Duterte said he could never be misinformed.
“I’m a lawyer and I know what I am doing,” Duterte said.
He also said he was not worried about finding a replacement for Sueno because “we do not lack talented, honest and intelligent” workers.
Sueno maintained his innocence about the allegations of corruption at the DILG but said he had no ill feelings towards President Duterte.
Sueno, also former governor of South Cotabato, nevertheless admitted he had lost sleep over the allegations, which he said, were quite heavy for him to bear.
“I am ashamed for my family as well as for the people of South Cotabato because of the controversies. But I am not mad at our President,” he said.
He said his conscience was clean.
“I’m not a corrupt official. I’m just a victim of intrigue and I never accepted a single centavo from anybody (for deals). I already accepted God’s plan for me,” Sueno said.
Sueno’s supporters also said the President might have been misinformed when he fired Sueno, a stalwart of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban).
South Cotabato Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes said she always knew Sueno to be a man of integrity.
“I’m saddened by the development but we cannot question the decision of the President,” Fuentes said.
She said Sueno had always been into business and owned several properties in South Cotabato for years. SFM/rga