1 month ago
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MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos slammed his predecessor yesterday over the latter’s threat of killing 15 senators to ensure victory, during the campaign rally of the administration’s senatorial slate in Davao del Norte, a bailiwick of the Dutertes.
“You know, sometimes we see the other political parties being surprised – or maybe intimidated by you, so they say all sorts of things,” the President told his Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatoriables in his speech at the Carmen Municipal Plaza, an apparent swipe at former president Rodrigo Duterte.
“We heard just the other day, maybe their situation is hopeless that they will resort to killing 15 senators. Well, that’s the problem for a person whose only solution to all the problems is to kill Filipinos. It is puzzling why,” he added.
“But you can also understand why. You would say: this campaign is going to be really difficult because our opponents (administration senatorial candidates) are formidable,” Marcos said.
Duterte made the controversial remark during the kickoff rally of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) senatorial slate held at Club Filipino, San Juan City Thursday night.
He proposed resorting to murder so that his pick for senators under the PDP-Laban – reelectionist senators Ronald dela Rosa and Bong Go, accused sex offender and his former spiritual adviser Apollo Quiboloy, actor Phillip Salvador, singer Jimmy Bondoc, Vic Rodriguez, Jayvee Hinlo, Raul Lambino and Rodante Marcoleta – can get in the upper chamber.
“Now there are many of them. What shall we do? Let’s just kill incumbent senators so there will be vacancies. If we can kill 15 senators, we can all get in. That would be a pity though. But they are very annoying. Not all of them,” Duterte said in Filipino, to cheers from his die-hard supporters amused by his “joke.”
“Talking of opportunities, the only way to do it is to use a bomb,” he added, stopping short of saying the Senate as an institution should be targeted.
Marcos also boasted that none of their senatorial lineup is pro-China.
“None of them are sycophants of China who are shouting with joy whenever our Coast Guard are bombarded with water cannons by huge vessels. They issue condemnations whenever our fishermen are blocked and robbed of their catch. We are fighting for that,” he said.
The President added that no member of the Alyansa lineup supported crime hubs and the abuses linked to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO).
Split in the middle
In the Senate, the lines are drawn between those who were not amused by Duterte’s violent remarks – and those who found it a joke.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros said she was horrified by Duterte’s latest dangerous speech.
“My first reaction is – what?! (Ano daw?!) The people are struggling in life, and yet this person’s solution is more violence?” Hontiveros said yesterday, as she accompanied her ally, returning senatorial candidate Kiko Pangilinan, in monitoring the prices of goods sold at Muñoz Market in Quezon City.
She said the people deserve to know more about ways to bring down inflation, instead of hearing candidates or their principals engage in violent rhetoric.
“Instead of the senators who Duterte wants to kill, it should be the prices of goods that should be targeted,” Hontiveros said.
Pangilinan said he would rather stay away from the growing rift between the camps of President Marcos and Duterte, and instead talk about his promise to bring down food prices and his experience when he was presidential assistant for food security and agricultural modernization.
He added that Duterte’s remarks were meant to grab headlines.
“We are focused on the issues of the people today. During the 90 days of the campaign, let us show the people that they are central to this campaign, not this political bickering between two big camps,” Pangilinan said in Filipino.
In a separate dwIZ interview yesterday, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said the country’s leaders should strive to veer away from issuing violent statements and instead promote peaceful and orderly elections.
“The election campaign is starting to heat up, and it is important for leaders of the country to call for a peaceful process, not promote violence,” Gatchalian said in Filipino.
Coming to the defense of the former president are two of his allies in the Senate – Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada and Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. – who found the remarks a hyperbole and a “joke.”
“PRRD is just joking around. It is a non-issue for me,” Estrada told The STAR yesterday.
“It’s just colorful language. That’s just how he expresses himself. I do not feel threatened by it,” added Revilla, a reelectionist under the administration slate Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas.
Duterte, known for his foul-mouthed, off-the-cuff speeches when he was president, is facing an International Criminal Court investigation for crimes against humanity due to his war on drugs, which killed thousands of drug users and pushers at the hands of police officers or vigilantes.
Enraged
For labor leader and senatorial candidate Sonny Matula, Duterte’s remarks pose a serious threat to the nation’s democratic institutions and to the safety of its public officials.
“Joking about killing senators is utterly irresponsible and dangerous. It violates Article 282 on Grave Threats as Threatening to Harm Someone’s Life, Honor or Property of the Revised Penal Code,” Matula said in a statement.
He also emphasized the gravity of Duterte’s remarks, especially in light of the ongoing political climate.
“This threat is even more alarming considering that his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, is currently facing an impeachment trial in the Senate. Such statements could be perceived as an attempt to intimidate or influence the proceedings,” Matula added.
Meanwhile, members of the Makabayan bloc in the House also expressed condemnation over the older Duterte’s latest tirade, referring to it as both dangerous and diversionary.
“It is alarming that the former president himself is giving this kind of statement. Killing is not a joke. Terrorism is not a joke. This kind of statement only showed the true color of their governance where killing or ordering the killing of those who opposed them seems normal,” House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said.
“The Filipino people are done with these theatrics. No amount of violent rhetoric and threats can shield the Dutertes from accountability for the thousands of lives lost and the systematic corruption under their watch,” Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Arlene Brosas said in a separate statement.
Meanwhile, Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Jil Bongalon called Duterte-aligned candidates as “Team China,” which he said has a long track record of appeasing Beijing, ignoring the plight of Filipino fishermen and weakening national institutions.
“These pro-China politicians let Beijing trample on our rights in the West Philippine Sea. They made excuses for Chinese aggression and questioned our own legal victory in The Hague. Why should we allow them back into power?” he said. – Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Jose Rodel Clapano, Rhodina Villanueva
