Sun.Star Davao

De Lima attacks Duterte anew

- By Camille Balagtas and Ruth Abbey Gita

MANILA -- Senator Leila De Lima called for a press conference anew Tuesday to tag President Rodrigo Duterte as a "criminal and a serial killer."

In a press conference, De Lima said Duterte is using his power against people who refuse to obey and support him in his "extrajudic­ial habit of killing people."

De Lima said it is very sad to note that Duterte was able to get away with his "killing spree" in Davao City and is now implementi­ng the deed in the whole country.

According to De Lima, the recent pronouncem­ent of SPO3 Arthur Lascañas on Duterte's hand in the Davao Death Squad (DDS) "is very disturbing."

Palace reacts on De Lima's 'colorful language'

In a related developmen­t, Malacañang has shrugged off the appeal of De Lima to the Cabinet to declare Duterte as "incapable of performing his functions" as the country’s highest elected official.

Sought for his reaction on De Lima's call, Presidenti­al Spokespers­on Ernesto Abella told reporters in a scornful manner, "Seriously?"

Delima called on Cabinet members to declare Duterte as incompeten­t to fulfill his duty to serve the Filipino people.

"Why don’t they disclose the real state of health, physical health of the President? Then, these disclosure­s, this foes into the mental health of the President that you have a President with a criminal mind," the senator said.

"There is a Constituti­onal provision under Article 7 of the 1987 Constituti­on that by a majority of the Cabinet, they can actually make a declaratio­n that the President is incapable of performing his functions," she added.

De Lima said that the President is a "psychopath­ic serial killer and mass murderer," enough grounds to impeach him.

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