President Duterte's "admission" of stealing from the government in a speech he delivered over four years ago is probably a joke.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque gave this explanation Friday, Nov. 5 after a reporter asked for clarification regarding Duterte's 2017 statement, which according to him, had since been used "weaponized" by Senator Richard Gordon.
"I think that is a joke po. Dahil ang paninindigan po ng Presidente, hindi po siya tatagal sa pulitika kung siya po ay corrupt (Because the President's stand is that he wouldn't last this long in politics had he been corrupt)," Roque said in response to the reporter.
In the latest episode of his "Talk to the People" public hearing Tuesday, President Duterte castigated his critics from the Senate and branded them as corrupt. He specifically mentioned Grodon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.
"I would not be President Duterte kung corrupt ako kagaya (I would not be President Duterte if I were corrupt like you),” Duterte said.
In response to this, Gordon dug up a speech given by Duterte on June 28, 2017 at the Philippine Chinese Charitable Association (PCCA) where the latter allegedly admitted to "stealing from the government".
“Ito po ang sinabi ng Presidente doon...‘I hate corruption. Hindi ako nagmamalinis. Marami din akong nanakaw pero naubos na’, (This is what the President said...I’m not being a hypocrite here. I have also stolen a lot but they are all gone now),” Gordon said.
Roque turned the tables on the senator, saying it was him who has a record of disallowance from the Commission on Audit (COA).
"Si Presidente po sa kaniyang napakatagal na karera sa paglilingkod wala pong disallowance ang COA. Ang mayroon pong disallowance, si Senator Gordon. Ibalik ang pera at nanawagan para sa pananagutan sa panig naman po ng Ombudsman (In his lengthy career of service, the President has never had a disallowance from COA. The one who has a disallowance is Senator Gordon. Return the money, the Ombudsman is also calling for accountability)," the Palace mouthpiece said.
Duterte claims that the veteran senator owes the government P86 million worth of public funds.
"Hayaan na lang natin kung ngumawa siya nang ngumawa dahil alam naman po natin kung ano ang riyalidad: Wala pong disallowance sa COA ang Presidente sa mahigit na 40 anyos niyang karera sa pulitika (Let him run his mouth, we know what the reality is: The President has never had a disallowance from COA in his 40-year career in politics)," he Roque said.