President Rodrigo Duterte dared all his critics to unite into one group so that he could easily focus on them.
The President made the call during the the relaunching of
the newly-renovated press briefing room at the New Executive Building in
Malacañang.
“I would be happy really if they would start to merge into
one command. Itong mga komunista at itong Liberal. At ito ‘yung iba na gustong
paalisin ako. Mag-isa-isa na lang kayo, isang grupo,” the President said. *
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| Liberal Party prominent members who are part of the minority bloc in the Senate, critics of the President (photo credit to Rappler) |
Administration allies have accused the Liberal Party (LP)
and left-leaning groups of engaging in a destabilization plot to oust President
Duterte from office.
The Liberal party thru its stalwarts, has denied the
allegations.
“I think you share the same ideological whatever para hindi
na masyadong mag-kalat ang ano --- we can focus on all of you,” Duterte said.
However, the President said that he would rather keep silent
about his critics because his focus right now is at the armed rebellion being
waged by terrorists and the New Peoples’ Army (NPA).
“Gusto ko lang malaman ninyo na ‘wag na muna ako diyan sa
mga criticisms sa mga Trillanes thing, itong mga Yellow, itong mga Reds,” he
said.
Duterte said that if the Marawi rebellion waged by the
Islamic State-inspired Maute terror groujp is replicated simultaneously in
major cities in Mindanao and the Visayas, the country would be in trouble.
“You could just imagine if what happened in Marawi would
have happened to about three or four cities in Philippines. This is an open
secret anyway among the military and the police that if these were to happen
simultaneous in three big cities or four, it could be Basilan, Zamboanga,
Cagayan, Davao and Cotabato and about one or two in the Visayas,” he said. *
But while the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the
Philippine National Police (PNP) are engaged with the ISIS-inspired extremists,
the New Peoples Army (NPA) staged multiple offensives against the
government prompting Duterte to cancel formal peace talks with the communists.
"And I don’t think they (NPA) have this modus vivendi
with the enemy. But if the Reds would finally do it, then they are now in
alignment with the Reds, the terrorists and the -- itong droga. I think this
country would go into shambles. Alam ninyo ‘yan maski dalawa lang,” Duterte
said.
“Modus vivendi” is an arrangement or agreement allowing
conflicting parties to coexist peacefully, either indefinitely or until a final
settlement is reached.
“So we’re trying our best just to keep silent. I have to
build a strong army and the police. Not to perpetuate myself, I don’t need it.
I find even the thought of just mentioning it an idiotic thing,” he added.
“But there are challenges ahead, threats that could come
our way after I shall have stepped down. If this will continue for another
time, this will continue to bug our children and grandchildren. I’m sorry but
this is the reality, not the reality of the Duterte administration, but the
reality of the problems confronting our country today,” Duterte said. *
Report from PNA.gov.ph
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