PRESIDENTIAL SLAP FOR TOM
Mayor says he has no problem being portrayed as a bad guy for pointing out problems in the peace and order situation.
President Rodrigo Duterte last night vowed to strike Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña for spreading lies about him and implying that he is a protector of the illegal drug trade.
Duterte said he has directed his staff to arrange a meeting with a certain official, whom he did not name at first.
“I came here because I wanted to speak with a certain official. Kung magkita mi, tamparoson nako sya (If we see each other, I will slap him),” Duterte said in a speech during Mandaue City’s 49th Charter Day celebration yesterday.
He slammed the official for allegedly saying: Ayaw hilabti ang Cebu, kay amo ni. (Leave Cebu alone. This is our turf.)
He eventually divulged that it was Osmeña.
“Hoy, Tomas, dili na ni panahon sa Katsila. Kanang style nimo nga mura ka’g si kinsa, taas kaayo ka manulti. Dili ta magkasinabot sa atong istorya, tamparoson tika. (This is no longer the Spanish era. Your arrogant style of speaking is not acceptable. If we cannot come to an understanding, I will slap you),” he said.
“Ako ang protector ng shabu? (I am the protector of the illegal drug trade?) P ***** i**, makita lang kita. Anak ka ng p***. Who are you to say that? As if you own Cebu? By what right? Just because you were a former president’s son or grandson?” Duterte added.
Osmeña is a grandson of the late president Sergio Osmeña Sr., the only Cebuano who became president during the Commonwealth period from 1944 to 1946.
Duterte dressed down Os- meña for his hubris.
“Kahibaw ka unsay sakit nimo, Tom? Hubris, proud ba, hambugero, kanang tawo nga tan-aw niya dili siya masayop (You know what your problem is, Tom? Hubris, you are proud, arrogant. You think that you could not make a mistake),” Duterte said.
“Cebu City is not your property. It has never been your territory. You are there because you have a name,” he said.
Duterte also made fun of Osmeña’s urinary catheter. The mayor underwent surgery in 2008 to remove his urinary bladder, prostate and 42 lymph nodes. The mayor has a drainage bag attached to his stomach and undergoes medical checkup annually.
Two sides
Osmeña, in a Facebook post, said the President, being a lawyer, should know that there are two sides to any story, “and not just what (Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael) Dino and PRO 7 (Police Regional Office Central Visayas) are telling him.”
“The President is entitled to say whatever he wants...The first step in solving a problem is to admit there is a problem, and if the police refuse to admit there is a problem because ‘Cebu is still safe,’ then they are only making it worse. If I have to be the bad guy for mentioning that there is a problem, so be it. No problem,” he said.
He vowed to continue doing his job, listed his mobile number and said that “as long as I still have your trust, I am here for you.” /
Regardless, I will continue to do my job. I was elected by the Cebuanos, and it is them I am obligated to. I will continue to act in the interest of my people, especially those who have no one else to stand up for them.
TOMAS OSMEÑA
Cebu City Mayor