MANILA – When leading the country, President Rodrigo Duterte “adheres strictly to the rule of law,” Malacañang said on Friday.
“The President’s brand of justice strictly adheres to the rule of law where the dismantling of the drug apparatus ensures the proper investigation of all drug-related killings,” said Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque.
Roque made the statement after Duterte was featured in the cover of Time magazine’s May 14, 2018 issue.
Duterte was among four “strongmen” featured in the cover. The others were Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The world leaders were featured a story titled “The ‘Strongmen Era’ Is Here. Here’s What It Means for You.”
In the article written by American political scientist Ian Bremmer, Time described Duterte as “a former mayor who talked more like a Mob boss than a President, on his promises to wipe out the drug trade with his own brand of justice.”
Duterte reacted to this in his speech during the Principals Training and Development Program in Davao City on Friday.
“Isa raw ako sa mga strongmen. Hindi naman ako strongman. I have never sent anyone to jail for badmouthing me,” the President stressed.
But when a foreigner criticizes him, Duterte said, “That’s another thing.”
He added, “Yung security guard, police, NPA, teacher, or gardener can bullshit me to no end. I can take that because you are my employer. I am just a government worker.”
Duterte also said he won the 2016 presidential elections because “I was the only one carrying the message that was appropriate at that time: corruption and drugs.”
According to Roque, Duterte “has demonstrated strong and decisive leadership – a quality appreciated by Filipinos as evidenced by the Chief Executive’s high satisfaction, approval, trust and performance ratings.”
He added that Filipinos “have learned not to take PRRD literally with his colorful language but they have surely taken seriously the issues the President has espoused, such as the war on drugs and crime.”
He stressed that Duterte’s war on drugs has been “acknowledged” by countries like United States, China and Indonesia as it is “not only a Philippine concern” but a “a global burden.”/PN
