Duterte stands firm by Faeldon in face of shabu smuggling hearings

President Rodrigo Duterte delivers a speech during the 19th anniversary celebration of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption in Malacañang on Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2017. (Photo from an RTVM video)

President Rodrigo Duterte stands by Customs chief Nicanor Faeldon despite a series of congressional investigations on the P6.4-billion worth of illegal drugs from China that slipped through the Bureau of Customs (BOC) last May.

“I stand by him. Really honest,” Duterte said in a speech on Wednesday during the celebration of the 19th founding anniversary of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) in Malacañang.

Duterte believes Faeldon was “outplayed” by corrupt officials in the BOC.

“Nalusutan siya [They got around him],” he said, adding that “almost all” officials at the Customs were corrupt. /atm