Duterte: ‘I accepted Dureza’s resignation’

Updated (9:35 p.m.)

President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday said he has accepted the resignation of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza.

“I am very sad that I accepted the resignation of Secretary Dureza,” Duterte said in his speech during the inauguration of the Bohol-Panglao International Airport (BPIA).

The President, however, did not elaborate on Dureza’s reasons for resigning.

In the same speech, Duterte also announced that he had fired Ronald Flores as Undersecretary for Support Services and National Program Manager of PAMANA, the development arm of the Office of the Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process (OPPAP), and Director Yeshter Donn Baccay.

“I fired his Usec. — si Ronald Flores of the Office of the Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process — and Director Yeshter Donn Baccay,” he said.

“Well in fairness to Secretary Dureza, wala man siyang ano (he doesn’t have…)… maybe because he’s the head of office. Itong dalawang nagkalat din (These two had messed up),” he added.

President Duterte did not explain what prompted him to fire the two officials.

He arrived at the airport at 5:15 p.m. and immediately boarded a helicopter that took him to Camp Rajah Sikatuna in Carmen town to meet Army troops.

He also graced the ceremonial turnover of housing units to the families of the soldiers killed in action.

The 300 housing units are located in the town of Dauis.

During his speech in Carmen, President Duterte told the troops about his plan to create the Army’s own sparrow unit to hunt down the communist rebels’ own hit squad called the sparrow unit of the New People’s Army.

He said the Army’s sparrow unit would be called “Duterte Death Squad.”

READ: Duterte wants to create ‘death squad’ to counter NPA’s ‘sparrow unit’

From Carmen, President Duterte returned to the BPIA at 7:37 p.m. and asked the Boholanos to take care of the airport.

“Indeed, it’s time to see wonders in Bohol,” said Duterte. The BPIA is the country’s first eco-airport and the newest hub in the region.

But while the President was speaking, a power interruption occurred which lasted only for two minutes – from 8:18 p.m. to 8:20 p.m. /ee