Koko: Obama rebuff was lesson in diplomacy for Duterte, but...

CITY OF MALOLOS—The rebuff from US President Barack Obama was a lesson in diplomacy for President Duterte, but the matter should now be put to rest, Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said here on Thursday.

Speaking at a news briefing, Pimentel said Mr. Duterte and Obama had mended fences in Laos and agreed to move on.

Pimentel was a guest at the opening of this year’s Sining at Kalinangan ng Bulacan (Singkaban) Festival here.

When asked about the cancellation of Mr. Duterte’s meeting with Obama in Laos this week after calling the US leader a “son of a bitch,” Pimentel said: “Let this be a learning experience... Everyone learns from his experience... Let us not blow the issue up anymore. Everything is fine. The two have met and there are talks about meeting in the future.”

Pimentel, however, defended Mr. Duterte. “Let him be what he is, that’s his true personality. That’s because if you try to change your behavior, you will not be the real person you are,” he said.

“Let us help lessen the negative effect of that issue,” he added.

Mr. Duterte’s war on drugs was visible in this year’s festival. One of the floats during the parade carried “PO1 Bato,” the police mascot representing the campaign against narcotics that has taken the lives of more than 3,000 drug suspects since Mr. Duterte took office on June 30.