Paolo: Joma a pathological liar

DAVAO CITY – Former vice mayor Paolo Duterte yesterday slammed Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founding chairman Jose Ma. Sison for naming him and his father President Duterte as protectors of illegal drug operations in the country.

Paolo branded Sison as a “pathological liar” for reviving old issues against him and his father.

“The statement sounded insanely absurd as it was a repetition of, if not inspired by, an old gossip propagated and sowed by an anti-Duterte senator who is also a rabid anti-communist. Mr. Sison, a pathological liar himself, was parroting a liar,” Paolo said without naming the senator.

“This echolalia showed how much Mr. Sison was willing to take for the sake of public attention, propaganda and significance. It also showed the nature of his politics and principles – where it’s acceptable for enemies to sleep together in one bed, speak one language and unify forces and work together until the common target is toppled down,” the presidential son added.

Paolo, however, said he is optimistic that Sison and his communist comrades will fail in their attempt to oust Duterte from office.

He said Sison is “the father of the oldest terror group in Southeast Asia” and is “a disgrace to this country.”

Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza said the communist rebels are fighting the government because of need, not ideology.

“That’s why they burn equipment, do extortion activities. Government doesn’t want this to happen,” he added.

Dureza reiterated the government is still open for peace talks with the communist rebels.

“The doors for peace negotiations with the communist rebels are still open,” he said.

Interior and Local Government officer in charge Eduardo Año urged the rebels to stop hostilities and abandon their call for a coalition government if they want peace talks with the government to prosper.

“We support the peace talks. However, you cannot demand peace yet do violence and plot the downfall of the government. Peace negotiations require an enabling environment for both sides to genuinely hear each other and arrive at sincere agreements,” he said.

The military said the government’s move to settle the communist insurgency through localized peace talks would be making the top leaders of the CPP and the National Democratic Front (NDF) irrelevant.

This is the reason why Sison is very critical of the government’s decision to temporarily cancel the holding of the already agreed resumption of the peace negotiation in Oslo, Norway last month, according to Col. Noel Detoyato, Armed Forces Public Affairs Office chief.