Duterte says soldiers will die of boredom waiting for Sison’s war, urges surrender
President Duterte belittled anew the condition of Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Joma Sison and threats of the New People’s Army (NPA), saying Filipino soldiers will die of boredom waiting for Sison to try and fight him.
Duterte made the statement days after Sison claimed on Monday that the President fell into a coma, an allegation immediately disproved by Duterte himself the same day.
In his speech in Davao City, Duterte reiterated that Sison is not able to conquer a barangay, what more the entire country and called on former rebels to invite their old comrades to surrender.
“’Di man pud ninyo matumba nang gobyerno. Di gani mo makagunit og usa ka barangay (You can’t topple the government. You can’t even lead a single barangay),” Duterte said Thursday evening.
“Mosukol mo nako? Tan-awa na akong army o way gibuhat, gahuwat lang og… Gusto man na nila’g giyera. Kay og di sila mang-giyera, mangamatay man pud sa luya (You’ll fight against me? Look at my army, doing nothing but wait for… They want war because if there is none, they’ll die of boredom),” he added.
“Mugawas ilang arthritis, ilang gout, mag-kiang-kiang na (They will get sick with arthritis, gout, and start to walk with a limp). Pero ang karamihan sundalo ko pati pulis ang – especially sundalo (But for most of the police and soldiers), it’s the abdominal – it’s either hepatitis, cirrhosis,” he continued.
Duterte then said that the NPA is also experiencing the sickness he mentioned.
“Pareho pud kamo, inyong sakit pareho sa sundalo. Ah adto ngadto manglungkab og kaldero nga dili ila. Kung sa gagmay sige’g pangayo, unya ang di pa gani ang uban mo-share, patyon ninyo (Same with you, you have the similar illnesses with the soldiers because you go there and eat food from pots that are not yours. You extort from the small people and if they refuse to share, you kill them),” he said.
The President then urged members of the NPA who surrendered to the government to return to the mountains and convince others that the country has improved.
“Pabalikon ta mo’g balik ugma sa bukid. Ingna nang mga kauban niyo. Unsa pa ba’y inyong gusto? Naa na man ang progreso (I will let you go back to the mountains tomorrow. Tell your comrades. Ask them what else they need because progress is already here),” Duterte said.
“Adtua nang inyong mga kauban, ayaw mo sige’g lingkod-lingkod diha. Balika ngadto. Ingna kanaog namo diri kay mag-istorya mo ni Duterte (Do not just sit there, go back and tell your comrades to come down so you can talk to Duterte),” he added.