Duterte vows ‘revolutionary’ action if traditional politicians stand in the way
He may not be God’s anointed messiah, but Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is willing to save the country from falling into a “moral crisis” by using his signature iron fist to initiate drastic reforms in the government.
By radical reforms, Duterte meant closing down all government agencies, except the judiciary, and place the country under a “revolutionary” government should anyone, especially traditional politicians, will stand in the way.
Duterte, the 70-year-old popular local executive, met the senior editors of the Manila Bulletin for a no-holds barred discussion on diverse
issues: Politics, same-sex marriage, divorce, birth control, among others.
Will Duterte run? He kept everyone guessing about his presidential ambition, however.
“Kung gusto ni God na maging pangulo ako, dapat noon pa (If God destined me to become president, it should have happened before),” Duterte said.
“Ayoko talaga maging president (I don’t want to become president). My time has passed,” he added.
But while he continued to play coy on his presidential bid, he stressed during the round-table discussion that the country needs a leader who cannot be beholden to anyone.
He went on to stress that he will push for a change in the 1987 Constitution – which he claims to be the main reason corruption in the country has not been stamped out – should he be the successor of President Aquino
The tough-talking mayor plans to initiate the sweeping reform in a span of six months to one year should he decide to run for president.
“Ngayon kung pahirapan ako, and I cannot get the reforms [I want], maybe in one year, something has got to give. I will declare a revolutionary government,” Duterte said.
Under his revolutionary Under his revolutionary government, Duterte said that he will raise the salaries of teachers and policemen.
R70,000 pay for cops “Tataasan natin ang sahod ng pulis ng R70,000. Pag corrupt pa rin sila, papatayin ko na sila (I’ll raise the salaries of policemen to at least R70,000 a month. If they remain corrupt, I will execute them),” he said.
Duterte, however, pledged not to shut down media.
He also batted for a change in the form of government from the current unitary form to federal, believing this is the key in resolving the decades old insurgency problem in Mindanao, which, in effect, will eventually lead in the prosperity of the region.
In the current government system, the Davao City mayor pointed out that much of the control of resources and power is in “imperial Manila,” which caused other provinces to languish behind it.
Oppressive system
The unitary system of government, Duterte said, has been proven to be oppressive since the Spanish colonial period. He believes that it is right time to change the current unitary system in order to break the colonization of Mindanao by the “elite in Manila.”
“Ang masakit, sa (What hurts, in) Manila they have the same incompetent politicians looking for incompetent sucefits cessors,” Duterte said.
Duterte is convinced that the federal system of government is the solution to the nagging Moro issue hounding Mindanao since the 1970s, saying that it is the only option to the Bangsamoro Basic Law. All presidents – past and present – have failed because the current form of government guarantees failure, according to Duterte.
Federalism, he explained, will allow regions to benefit from their resources.
“Palawan would have been the richest region because of oil in Malampaya, yet it could not benefit from the R167billion revenue it has so far earned as of March this year,” Duterte said. Palawan is supposed to be entitled to 40 percent of the Malampaya revenues, yet it has yet to benefit from it, he said.
Federalism
Duterte added that federalism will also solve the Mindanao insurgency and will render the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) moot and academic.
The Davao City mayor also said he supports same sex marriage, explaining everyone deserves dignity; favors divorce, citing his own experience; and supports birth control.
“Did you know that in Davao, we give R5,000 to women who agree to undergo ligation,” he said.
Duterte also regaled his audience with stories on how he made Davao one of the safest cities in the world.
His iron-fist policy against crime in Davao has earned the ire of human rights advocates.
Asked how many criminals he had shot so far, Duterte said four without batting an eyelash and went on to narrate the first time he pulled the trigger.
On the question who among the presidentiables he thinks espouses his dream for the country, Duterte quipped: “One has moral issues. The other one, well she can be dictated upon by the other one lower than her.”
But when one of the editors mentioned his name, Duterte gave a thumbs up and said, “very good.”
In the latest Pulse Asia survey on possible presidential bets, Duterte ranked third with 15 percent, behind neophyte Senator Grace Poe and Vice President Jejomar C. Binay.
In the most recent SWS results, Duterte was fourth.