Gordon recalls Duterte admission of sin: 'Marami akong ninakaw pero naubos na'
Senator Richard Gordon on Thursday, Nov. 4 turned the tables on President Duterte saying the chief executive himself has admitted that he is corrupt.
Gordon specifically cited the President’s pronouncements during a speeech last June 28, 2017 at the Philippine Chinese Charitable Association (PCCA), saying Duterte made an “admission against self-interest.”
“Ito po ang sinabi ng Presidente doon...on June 28, 2017: ‘I hate corruption. Hindi ako nagmamalinis. Marami din akong nanakaw pero naubos na’, (I’m not being a hypocrite here. I have also stolen a lot but they are all gone now),” Gordon said quoting Duterte’s speech at the resumption of the Senate blue ribbon committee’s hearing into the overpriced COVID-19 pandemic supplies.
“Yun lang ho ang sagot ko, Mr. President. Kayo na umamin na kayo ay nagnakaw sa gobyerno. Hindi po kami ang nagsabi niyan. Kayo ang nagsabi niyan. Wala po akong nasabing nagnakaw kayo (That’s all I can say, Mr. President. It was you who admitted to stealing from government. I wasn’t saying that. It was you who said that. I never said you stole anything),” the Senate blue ribbon panel chief added.
In his latest public address last Wednesday, Duterte once again targeted Gordon and Senate minority leader Franklin Drilon in his tirades. The President said he would not be the country’s leader if he was corrupt like them.
Duterte’s tirades against the senators stemmed from the Senate’s investigation into the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. which bagged multi-billion peso contract for the purchase of COVID-19 pandemic supplies despite being an undercapitalized company.
The President has repeatedly defended the government’s COVID-19 spending and also defended his former economic adviser, Michael Yang, who is also implicated in the alleged anomaly.
For his part, Drilon also refuted the allegations of corruption coming from Duterte, saying his record is clear and that his conscience is clean.
“I am not corrupt...Since I joined the public service in 1986, I have faithfully adhered to the highest moral standards. I have strictly conducted myself within the standards embodied in the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and our anti-graft laws,” Drilon said in a statement.
Drilon also pointed out that he has never been tried for corruption in the Ombudsman or Sandiganbayan in his 32 years in public service.