Speech of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during Courtesy call of the Pastoral Parish Council for the Responsible Voting (PPCRV) delegates
Rizal Hall, Malacañang
03 August 2016
Kindly sit down. Salamat po.

A lot of you, siguro hindi niyo ako kilala, I have been just the mayor for—kunsabagay, maiksi lang 23 years, mayor ng Davao City. (laughter) And I have been the congressman during the 11th Congress, we were the impeached Mayor Estrada. At one time, I was also the Vice Mayor for 3 years to my daughter, yung nagbubugbog ng sheriff (laughter) if you recall.

Well, small town boy lang po ako, probinsiyano ako. I do not claim any greatness to the presidency, wala ho akong—hindi ho ako—even the last—hindi ako nakatikim ng mga Valedictorian o Salutatorian. Puro 75 lang po ako, all the way through. (laughter) Totoo po, I’m just an ordinary guy who still wondering why I’m here. Bakit ako dumating sa presidency? Hindi naman ho ako tumakbo, parang tumakbo lang, I was even hesitant to present myself. Kaya lang everybody was—a few guys in the Philippines were really pushing for my candidacy. Initially po, wala akong—nagdadalawang-isip to say ‘No’ because wala akong ambisyon, wala akong pera, pati I have this family with my—at nasabi ko na, na my wife is suffering sa 3rd stage sa breast cancer.

And I would have wanted to just to be with her, hindi ko naman sinasabi na madalian, but you know—lalo na na naghiwalay kami, so I—balikbayan ako sa dating bahay to be with my wife and children. Ayaw ko kasi magsama ang loob ng mga anak ko. But nagkaroon rin ako ng—we’re separated at annulled. Meron akong kinakasamang—meron akong isang anak sa kanya. Kaya nung nag—I think it was in this room, was it? Dito ako nagtake-oath. Doon yung isang pamilya ko tapos doon rin ang isang pamilya. (laughter) Ayaw pa ninyo yan? First time, dalawang First Lady? (laughter) Eh, match it with—.

Well, anyway that is the—my vignettes of life. Ang ano ko, everybody knows that, right at the start I said that if I get to be a candidate here, hindi ako tumatanggap ng mga—and I tell you, Megaworld, si Lucio Tan, I refused their contribution. And along the way, it was really a shoestring budget. But ang ano ko kasi, ni wala akong barangay captain sa Luzon. Not a single barangay captain sa Visayas. But Mindanao, well it was a bit gray all the time kasi karamihan sa administrasyon, but at that time, I was—I thought or I was thinking that if I’d win, it’s just a matter of habulan talaga—dikitan.

Nung lumabas yung results, I could not even imagine myself, the almost six—more than 6 million ang sheer majority ko. Saan ito galing? Wala akong partido, well moribund naman yung PDP, it was resuscitated when I filed my certificate under their wings. So I thought that there has to be a message for this. Kung maari, mga 100—150, sabi ko pero with a 6 million, until now, ano’ng gusto ng tao?

Well anyway, I am not beholden to anybody. So anak lang ako ng migrant sa Mindanao, mahirap lang po ako. Ang nanay ko, maestra lang. All the way, ang nagtulong sa akin, yung mga taga-Davao lang rin na may pera. But kung sabihin mo dito, nag-contributions, wala. Wala ako. Kasi kung may magdating, bibiyahe ako. Kung walang magdating pera, istambay lang ako sa Davao. But that kind of a message from the people, 6 million plus, 15 million all in all. huwag na nating bilangin, yung margin ko lang. May hinihingi iyan. Ang hinihingi lang nila is kagaya ko rin, that’s all the time, asking sa buhay na mapayapa, na tama.

So, alam mo, you’ll have to—I don’t know if you, pag-akyat mo, an incoming president has a few. minutes with the incumbent president. Bagong ihatid siya sa labas, but si President Aquino nagsabi talaga, “I really do not know if I congratulate you or wish you luck.” Sa totoo lang, kung pabalikin mo ako, ma’am, ayaw ko na, ayaw ko ng tumakbo. (laughter) Naimbyerna lang ako doon sa—and probably must have noti—taken notice of it. I was talking maski saan, without me knowing even my persona intimately, the huge crowds, maski saan ako, it’s always filled to the brims ang plaza. And even in—sa hometown ni ano, of course, I lost, taga-doon siya. Pero ang ano ko, I was inspired by the multitude and yun na pala ang ano, that was really—I should have really—for the reason na wala akong partido, I didn’t really bother to—sabihin mong bigyan mo ako masyadong importansya. Maybe the enthusiasm of hearing a new guy here and there.

Ngayon, ang nanalo ako, sabi ko isa lang ‘to—gusto ang pagbabago. Now, meron akong ano sa tao ha, I have this dynamics with some people but not all. When I was mayor, I was the favorite whipping boy of the Human Rights. I do not blame de Lima, trabaho niya yan eh. Kasi kung ako ang ilagay mo diyan, yayariin talaga kita. Before I became a mayor, I was a prosecutor for 10 years. I was doing trial work and so I could see the very imbalance sa money, corruption and the plain justice na alam natin. Marami akong nakitang kaso na hina-handle ko na I lose the case because ang shabu, maging tawas, ang pulis hindi sisipot, clearly ang prosecutor, nabibili pati—because of the corrosive effect of money.

Ang kalaban natin dito is greed and the desire of other—I would assume na ganun, that you—papasok ka dito sa droga, it is your greed for money and I would just assume that you are going to destroy, you are destroying my country kasi alam ko talaga, ano ang nangyayari sa mga biktima nila. Noon pa, 23 years akong mayor, I was a prosecutor. Kaya fingertips ko na kung ano ang nangyayari sa Pilipinas,. Kaya nung mayor ako, galit talaga ako. Kasi yung isang pamilya, matamaan ng isang addict, it is not only the guy who’s dysfunctional, it is the family who becomes dysfunctional too.

Meron kasing development sa ating bayan at maawa ka sa mga kapatid natin, a lot of them, 5 million now are out of the country working on their ass—to death just to eke out a living to support a family, to send a child to school and to feed the family. Hanggang ngayon, mapauwi ko na lang, kukunin ko na lang, kasi bumagsak yung—because of the oil, and those are the imponderables of life. When it’s good, it pours. When it bads, it’s really a arid thing.

Ngayon, papauwiin ko yung iba, kasi walang suweldo at saka niloloko lang ng mga—kaya do not—sabi, may sentimento ako sa mga Arabo eh. Kasi you can just imagine, totoo yan yung abuses, sexual or other, talagang lahat yan. Pati yung walang suweldo, tapos isang beses silang pakainin, parang hindi naman tao itong mga—kaya ako, I send somebody, they should be brought home immediately, if there’s nobody to pay for them, I’ll bring them home. Yung iba, kinuha yung passport, and it’s not returned to them. Well, I don’t know, so sabi ko doon kay Yasay, puntahan mo yun doon tapos bigyan mo ng travel document. Kausapin mong mga doon sa—we’re doing everything we can.

Itong shabu, dalawa ang takot nila, ‘twas the reason why I won by landslide. Hindi naman ako kilala, kasi nababalitaan nila, balitaan nila that security is the answer. Sense of security na yung mga anak nilang pinapaaral nila dito, hindi mamatay, they would not fall victims to rapes and killing, hino-holdup. O yung namang anak nila, baka malulong sa droga. So yung sakripisyo ng tatay pati nanay, when the father goes out of the country, or the mother or both of them goes out, automatic yan, because the absence of a father and mother, it is, this is a dysfunctional family. Yung iba na hindi nadidisiplina, they left to the care of the grandparents o sa mga kapitbahay at an early age, yun ang vulnerable talaga. At yung iba naman, they fall victims, nire-rape, pinapasok ng bahay tapos—

Yung panahon namin, matanda na ako, ang niri-rape doon, wala namang niri-rape na babae, it is only now that you have this bestiality of saying spectacle of a 1-year old child being raped. Kaya ako, I had—I earned this authority, kaya sinabi ko nung mayor ako, umalis kayo dito sa Davao. Ayaw ninyong umalis, in front of the media—national. Ayaw ninyong umalis dito, even drug pusher, patayin ko kayo. Tapos. Walang istorya. I am willing to accept the consequences. I assume for responsibility at okay lang sa akin. Whatever happens, I’m the President now, I’d like to repeat it to you again, itong problema ng bayan especially drugs, I’m putting at stake: my honor, my life and the presidency. Kung matanggal ako dito, fine. Wala naman akong ano diyan sa—ayaw ko ngang tumakbo eh, o di sige, mag-uwi na ako sa amin.

Military ako dito, you want to—stage ako dito, fine. Tawagan ninyo ako ako ang mag-swear sa inyo yan. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the military, would like to take over the country. Ako pa, o. “Raise your right hand, I, Major General would like to be the ruler of this country”, go ahead! (laughter) Tignan natin kung—.

Kaya makita ninyo, there’s a lot of killing, I have maintained my cold silence. Nagwarning na ako, wala akong magawa. You want me to fight the drug war? I am not fighting a crisis, I’m fighting a war. Ang mga amo nila, druglords. Because media is fond of, “ooh where’s the big fish?” “Eh Duterte, eh mga pulis.” You kowtow and you protect the—kasi may pera kayo doon. Wala na yan dito, nasa China. Even the matrix sa aming intelligence, ano talaga, yung board, may limang mukha doon na may pangalan. Of course, they’re aliases. Saan ko hanapin yan? Doon sa China. You have this big digital map, real time, focus lang nila, saan ba natin ang sunod? Yan, Pandacan, diyan diyan, i-focus mo. Ayan tindahan diyan, diyan mo ihulog. Tapos sabihin mo, yung pera kunin mo sa Tondo, may nakasakay doon na kotse, naghihintay. So how the—now, who are here on the ground? It’s the apparatus, yung mga tinyente niya, tapos yung mga basurero. Yung tawag niyan basurero eh. Sabihin ba’t mo pinapatay yang—anak ka ng—if I have to stop the problem, I have to deny them the market and before I can do that, I have to exterminate the apparatus. So wala ng mangbili, mangtanggap, kung mapatay ko na ito lahat ‘ng tinyente, then the business of shabu would no longer be viable.

Noon sabi, “Duterte, extra-judicial anu-ano.” And I never really, I mean, I never said yes—said no. But ngayong inipit ko ng lahat, look! It’s 507—to date who are surrendering. Tignan mo ang ginawa nila sa bayan natin? Kaya ako galit, kaya talagang galit as in galit. Noon pa, mayor pa ako. Kasi dito na ako naka-experience, mayor pa ako, huwag na yung presidente. Na isang kumpare ko, magtawag sa akin, nag-iiyak sa telepono, brod, puwede ka bang pumunta rito? Insular Hotel. That’s a high end—because of my friend, it’s 2 o’clock in the morning, pumunta ako roon, sabi ko, “Anong diprensiya?” And—but I could hear a music inside the wagon o yung van, blaring at I could distinctly hear the shouts of a woman. So pagpunta ko, was so—embrace me, umiiyak, almost to a desperation. Sabi ko, “Why?” Sabi niya, “Mayor, sorry talaga pero yung baril ko kasi, naiwan ko sa opisina ko sa baba, kinuha ng anak ko at dinala doon sa—niri-rape niya yung kapatid niya na babae, elder.” Sabi ko, I was—kung akyatin ko ‘to o yung pulis, baka magkabarilan, pati yung dalawang anak niya tuloy ang mamatay. Sabi ko, “tiisin mo na lang.” Magwi-wear off yan. So pinasok ko yung asawa, huwag mo na lang—kasi you’re avoiding scandal eh, sige ka iyak diyan. Sumama na lang kayo sa akin, let’s have coffee somewhere else. Eh naghanap kami ng mga ano, kape-kape, istorya. But the wife was ano, so inuwi ko sila, tapos yun mga 10 o’clock, he called me, sabi niya, natulog na yung anak niya na—.

One time, I’ll give it to you raw. One time, there was this reunion, Christmas reunion. So makita-kita, dumating itong adik, kita niya yung—karga-karga ng kapatid niyang babae na anak, sabi niya, “ooh ito pala yung anak ko, ano ko, pamangkin ko”, kaya tingnan ko. Tapos in the merry making, nawala. So everybody got—was in panic. So hanap sila kung saan. Pagdating dun sa—70 meters away doon sa Mandog yun eh, taga-Davao, kayo taga Davao, yung Mandog, it’s a settlement just beside the river, eh yung pobre na settlement, can afford lang doon. Nakita yung bata, nakabukas na yung abdomenal cavity. Ngayon nahuli, sabihin, “ay ganon kasi ako mayor, pagka tinamaan ako, kung walang iba, pati yung kambing namin,” ahm nawala, salvage time talaga tayo dito.

Maya-maya, bukas diyan, ang pamilya kasi magsabi, huwag na lang idemanda yan mayor, kapatid eh. Ganoon ang nangyayari sa pamilya. Pag nahuli na, eh dito, isang gobernador na nanalo ngayon, nasa kulungan pa, yung anak niyang isa, congressman. Nung last election, before this, tatakbo sanang governor, eh bangag, kung—dala namin diyan sa airport, kasi pa-rehab dito. Alam mo sa airport nagkalat, umiyak tapos parang bata, ayaw talaga magpadala. Yung nanay congressman ngayon, tatay nanalo pagka-mayor. Sabi, “Mayor, huwag.” sabi man, “Mama, ayaw ko magpunta doon.” Only child, walang asawa, only child eh. Alam mo ang nanay kasi, I mean nanay, “Mayor, huwag na lang, kaawa na.” Sige, ayan nakalock palagi sa bahay nila. Nanalo ang tatay rin, kasi may graft and—murder man siya, graft and corruption, andiyan sa provincial jail. Yan ang istorya dito.

Kaya ako, walang atrasan. Kung matanggal ako sa trabaho, fine. Kung yan lang pantakot sa akin, impeach? Go ahead. Kudeta kayo? Sige kudeta kayo diyan. Ako nga mag-swear in sa inyo. Sige, ilan diyan general gustong mag-take over? Mahirap yan kasi may problema tayo. It’s war, it’s not a crisis. 700— ang nagsurrender. PDEA says 2 years ago that there are 3 million addicts in this country. That’s 2 or 3—but 2 years ago. Now incremental increase by the use of drugs, place it at about a conservative rate, dagdagan mo na lang ng 700. So there are 700, it’s about 3,000,700. Saan ko ito ilagay?

Ito kasi user, pusher talaga yan. Huwag mong sabihin na user ka user, kung anak ka ni Ayala, ni Gokongwei, maniwala pa ako. Pero kung taga-Tondo ka, at blighted area sa Davao, hindi ako nag—I’m not trying to insult my fellowmen, dumaan ako sa hirap, talagang 1956 nakita ko bahay namin sa Davao, dinimolish. If I close my eyes and take a deep breath, I could still imagine yung amoy ng water lilies doon pati yung tubig.

Kaya huwag kayo masyado dahil ano, mahirap. Mahirap rin ako kaya huwag ninyo akong bolahin. Poverty and whatever cannot be used because it is already the nation that you are trying to destroy by being a member of that apparatus. Hindi na ito basta isang salita because I have ordered the opening of the military camps because ang military lang ang may mga big spaces, reservation. Sabi ko sa kanila, give me one hectare in every region, I have to build rehab centers all over the country, it cannot come overnight. I have to design a—parang cottage, tapos I have to employ doctors, plenty of them and pay them the rate that they are getting from the private sector para they will stay there and treat the Filipino. I would need a lot of nurses. Sabihin mo lang 500,000 o 3 million whichever is correct. I still have to worry even if it’s only one Filipino. Yan ang problema ko ngayon but it will really come to pass that we have just to do something about our countrymen.

I have repeatedly told you, we cannot build a nation by killing our own citizens and that goes for wars: MI, MN pati itong komunista, that’s why, simultaneously even before I took my oath of office, talagang naglakad na ako. I was sending already people to talk to them. Kasi pag hindi ito natapos, pag hindi ko ito natapos, itong problema sa drugs, walang Pilipino na presidente makatapos nito, tingnan mo. Seven years from now, double the addicts—by the increase, then we will have the narcopolitics. There’s a book Ioan Grillo, it can be bought anywhere—online. This is the history of the failed states of South America because of drugs.

Ngayon, itong mga mayaman, may mga eroplano, yung iba talaga gumagamit pati yan nandiyan makikita mo mga…, but they used coccaine and heroin. It is not as destructive as shabu because it is grown naturally, poppy yan eh which is organic. But itong shabu is a deadly mix of chemicals. One year of constant use sa shabu, would shrink the brain of a person and therefore rehab is no longer viable, sabi ng forensics. Eh lumiit na eh.

So kung ikaw may pamilya ka pumasok diyan, na magnanakaw ng pera mo, mga anong bagay-bagay, ipabili sa labas. Then after that, if there’s no more to steal, they go to some other people’s house. And by the time they go there, nakabungog na, they rape the mother, the wife. Kaya tayo walang security, even if you—ngayon, you leave your house, maraming gunggong, baka pumasok sa ano mo at—in Davao, noon ang ginawa nila pero yun iba ito, a problem because at Davao noon, whoever claimed to be an Alsa Masa member or against the communist were given freely arms. Nakikita ko, nagma-manufacture na sila sa maliit na camp, military camp, yung paltik, just to fight the communist.

Noong panahon na wala ng komunista, with so many hands in the hands of the idiots, they started the—papasok sila ng bahay, i-hostage nila yung bahay and then they demand money and since you know that you cannot get more than 50 thousand every withdrawal, so mag-istambay yan sila doon for how many days and at the same time, they eat and board there. They drink and they rape every night, the wife, the children and the maids. Ano’ng gawain ko pagka ganun? Pag nakaharap mo ako, sorry ka, I mean I’m sorry. It’s not easy to take a human life, but I’m sorry. Ganun talaga. One less evil, the last one would be me kasi tiga-patay man ako ng tao but I’m ready to face God. And I will just say, “Well, I am at your disposal.” Eh ngayon, andiyan, wala ako, pasensiya ako. Either you turn in, sacrifice, tell the barangay captain, let them report everyday in the meantime. Keep them busy. Basketball o ano, just keep tract of their whereabouts. When the time comes, I would begin to—yung parang refab na ano lang, and they are going to a military camp.

Tapos sabihin minsan, sabihin ng korte, kasi hindi pa puwede papush up, pasayaw. Of course, they should. Part of really rehab is to do physical, eh kasi pinapa-push up. Andito na yung Human Rights, ano ba naman yung push-up? And they are not supposed to—they should be allowed, they should be ordered to work to keep them busy. To keep their minds or at least tire them out. At the end of the day, they longer cannot be thinking of shabu. Yan ho ang istorya diyan.

Now I’ll go to this corruption. Sabi nila, which is better, Duterte? ConCon, ConAss, Congress itself? Alam mo ganito: Gusto ko ConCon. But during the meeting, kami, sabi ko, “How much do we spend ConCon,” “Depende, kung matapos nila kaagad, maybe 10 billion. But if they tarry for long, how much? 30 to 50 billion. Naku, kalokohan ‘to.

Tutal ang constitution natin, you know, the constitution, you saw it except for the few amendments, the wordings of the constitution from the time of the Americans in 1935 up to the—in between the years of Martial Law, we have these—mga kay Marcos then eventually itong ating Constitution ngayon.

You know, ang akin kasi is like this, we should not be too judgmental about the ‘tong members of congress. Kasi ito sila, you can’t tell by the track records that they have. Ito naman having elected, re-elected nagpahinga lang, re-elected, re-elected. If ang acceptability nila sa tao, ganun, so who are we to judge that they are not competent? And besides, Filipino tayong lahat. Why would I embrace principles that would do—ano sa bayan natin. Leave them because tutal ang kanilang produkto will have to be submitted to us for a plebiscite and for all the time that they would be crafting a new constitution, I am here—so I—tiwala ninyo, binigyan na lang rin niyo ako ng 15 million, di at least, maniwala kayo that I will be the last one to agree to anything there that would destroy our country. And even lalo na yung pera, the only reason I won is that I carried the right message. I have to stop corruption. Now I’m telling you, it will really be a clean government for the nth time I’m telling you that. (applause)

Tapos, I was telling the message of drugs and criminality. Actually that was—the centerpiece was really federalism, pero kung ayaw ng tao, then fine. But they would have to give to the Moro people what they deserve. In 1521 when Magellan landed in the Philippines somewhere in Leyte, he brought with him Christianity, please know that 100 years before, Islam was already planted firmly in the island of Mindanao. There have been so many conquerors, for the Spaniards up to the Americans, talagang hindi na ano ang—because may posttests sila eh, and that’s the religion of Islam.

So lahat doon kasi na—well, conquered by Spaniards, Americans, sila mismo na-marginalize. But along the way, it created hostility that—animosity that until now exist. Unless, we correct historical injustice there. We will never find peace in Mindanao. Sabihin ko sa inyo yan, nothing short of the configurations somewhere. Federal type if you want ‘no, if it’s not accepted by the surveys because people are really ignorant also about federalism, then sabi ko,
let us maintain this government, but you have to not really pleased or make them happy but correct the injustice and give them at least of what is left of their original homeland, ibigay mo diyan sa kanila. Ang Bang—sa Tausug and that would be on the western side, Zamboanga archipelago pati dito sa island of Mindanao, that’s the center, that is the Lanao, Maguindanao area. Maniwala kayo sa akin, I’m telling you as president, we will never find peace.

Ngayong itong ConCon, ang ayaw ko lang diyan is—ang plano ko talaga is to—my orders to the comelec is destroy the oligarchs that are embedded in government now. Yan yang sila, I ‘ll give you an example publicly, in front of the national: Ongpin. Roberto malakas kay Marcos noon nung presidente, Trade Minister I think. Then malakas siya sa in succession. Ramos, he was a hanger on, then kay Gloria, kay Pnoy. Now, he owns the online, hindi ko nga malaman yung online niya, yung pusta doon sa labas—taga labas o itong domestic gambling, kung magkano ang sa gobyerno.

These are the guys na umuupo lang sa eroplano nila, umuupo lang diyan sa mga mansion nilang kung saan-saan. Yung pera nila, nagpapatak parang metro ng taxi. Sabi ko: destroy.

Yang Laguna de bay, whenever I look down there, I’m sorry if you have one there, mga triangulo, wala ka ng makitang ano—the only space is—ay yung isang triangulo dito, the small one is just to divide maybe the one on the right and on the left. Ang mga fisherman diyan, wala na. Ang sabi ko, one of these days, I will destroy them. It cannot be na there will be there for all time at the expense of the poor fisherman.

I warned them, contractualization, eh sabi ni Bebot Bello—Secretary, nung last meeting, kulang siya ng mga tao na mag-inspect sa lahat ng businesses. Kaya sabihin ko sa inyo ngayon, ako mag-warning lang, mamili ka: Stop contractualization o patayin kita. You know why? Kaya ko magsalita ng ganon? Ang president, well I am here, may immunity ako, puntahan kita, patawagin, barilin kita diyan, dalhin mo sa punerarya, painitin mo ang ulo ko, ah. I will call you, and slap you one by one. Eh sanay akong—talagang naninipa ako ng tao, maniwala ka.

Maski pulis doon sa Davao, walang exempted doon. Bakit ako mag-ano ng magsayang, ayan Bebot, wala pa gaano masyado tao, I cannot inspect every business that buong Pilipinas. Magkamali ka? No tolerance, sarahan kita. I will just order the secretary, look into the record. Sarhan mo yan, kung walang—wala tayong power magsara, puntahan ko barilin ko. E di wala na, tapos na. Sarado ang negosyo mo.

Ah, that’s just a—ano lang yan, hyper bully. (laughter) Ngayon, … totoo, ang presidente bumaril. (laughter) Pero ganon na nga ang tapon sa utak ko. I owe no one, I do not serve any vested interest. Lahat ako, may utang ako sa Pilipino people. So for the few, mga—you know, I’d like to tell you, nag-landslide ako sa mga overseas workers, baka hindi niyo akalain. Sa military, nag-landslide ako. Malaman mo yan kasi advance voting yan sila eh, kung na-assign sila sa ibang lugar, may nagboboto. Pulis nag-landslide ako. Kaya gusto ko lang ninyo malaman ninyo, maski ako ganon lang, I have the support of—kasi—what does that mean? Marami ang tao, ke military ka o hindi, maraming tao na tama yung utak. Ako lang ang hindi nagshabu na medyo nasira konti, (laughter) kaya huwag ninyo akong bolahin ganyan, hiritan ko kayo.

So ito, now Constitution, ConCon? There will be dominated by—talagang ganon eh, sila lang yung makapag-ano ng—alam mo itong ConCon, ang patakbuhin nila anak nila: anak nila, asawa nila. We have a problem here sa ating society, we’re given to a—why? Because we remain a feudal state. Kaya ang election, bloody. Kaya yung mayor, yung bata niya makipagpatayan doon sa kabila because it means everything to him including the preservation of life.

Kasi ang tao kahirap ng—we have to improve. Mayor, barangay captain, may nagsakit, takbo sa barangay captain. Tapos barangay captain, dala niya si mayor. So mayor naman, order ospital, may pera gobyerno. So walang problema. Yan.

So, eskwelahan. Kami mayor, “mayor, wala kaming high school diyan, marami na”—“O, sige.” Tapos sa mayor naman, tawag doon sa executive assistant, “oo sige, priority, sige bigyan doon.” Ganon, ganon yan eh. Tapos eskwela, pagkain, edukasyon ng mga bata, trabaho ng asawa niya, gawaing casual, di doble ang kita nila. Tapos yung anak, bibigyan siya ng mayor. So it’s all feudal, so when election time comes, pag sinabi ng barangay captain, “ito,” pagka sinabi ng mayor, “ito yung kandidato natin.” Kaya actually, alam mo, I would like to think that if you believe in God, I’d like to talk to you about destiny, let me interrupt.

Destiny is God-given. Alam mo ako, kilala niyo ako. Kayo taga—alam naman ninyo, wala akong partido. If at all, ano lang yung for show, parang for the purposes of ganun—now tell me, saan ako kumuha ng 15 million plus with the margin of 6 million? Sige nga? Except in Davao, pero yung Davao del Norte, del Sur, wala na. They supported Liberal, hindi ako namomolitika. (laughter) Saan ako kumuha ng boto sa Luzon? Ay, nagwallop ako, I got a lands—alam ninyo, nag-landslide ako Metro Manila pati Calabarzon. In all the surveys, I was lowest here. Bakit naloko ko itong mga Tagalog? (laughter) Bisaya, okay lang kasi Bisaya eh. Totoo ha, until College of Law, kasi panay lang rin kasi, eh yang Mendiola diyan, nandiyan yung—Legarda diyan sa kanto na yan, they serve the best chilled. Pagdating sa classroom, magkatinginan lang sa, o ano, sige bah, akala mo, nag-aaway, ha! sige, taga-ganon, sige na inom. Ah 75 lang, pero okay man. (laughter) Classmate ko, kababata ko yang mga taga-Davao, classmate ko yan si Dominguez from kindergarten to high school. Valedictorian. na-expelled ako sa Ateneo, lumipat ako ng—sa Digos.

Dureza. Dureza, valedictorian. Tugade, he was my classmate in San Beda, Valedictorian. Rudy Salalima, yung ano doon sa may ano, Cum Laude yan. Ako? Nandiyan mga taga-San Beda, Bungbong mag-graduate na lang, hindi man ako pinasali sa graduation exercise. (laughter) Hindi dahil hindi nakabayad ng tuition. (laughter) Tapos uwi ako dun sa—sibat ako, uwi ako ng Davao. Sabi ng nanay ko: “Oh Rodrigo, kailan ka magkuha ng ticket?” Kasi alam niya nagpractice-practice na kami magpasok diyan sa stage eh. “Naku ‘ma, sabi man ng pari ‘ma na ano, magulo kasi ang San Beda.” 1972 kami, Martial Law. Sige putukan, ang kalaban nandito, kami nasa labas, diyan. Hala, sige martsa. “Sabi man ng pari na, ano lang daw, i-postponed na lang muna. Nag-attend lang kami ng mass tapos binlessed kami, wala gud. (laughter) Di, oh aba ewan ko nga ‘tong ewan ko tong San Beda ‘ma?” Tapos sabi ng mama ko, “bili ako ng ticket,” kasi noon magtawag ng telepono lang, tapos bilihin mo ang ticket, “eh di wala na pala?” Sabi ko: “wala na ‘ma siguro.”

Buwisit itong San Beda, nagpunta sa Transfiguration, it’s a monastery ng mga Bedista, Benedict. Doon magpunta kayo, it’s a very beautiful place and you should hear the monks sing there. Oo, Bukidnon, you should visit the place once upon a—okay naman, di naman masyado magulo.
Nagpunta yan sila doon nag-immersion, mga maestra. Alam mo ito si Father Lacson, patay na eh, sabi niya: “baba na lang tayo sa Davao, andun man yan si Duterte, akin yan estudyante. Because at—nung na expelled ako, but I was reconsidered because yung mga professor ko, nagsabi, “where will this boy go?” If you don’t certify him as a graduate of the—(laughter) di nireinstate ako, naging abogado talaga ako. I was able to take the bar. I was given a diploma but if you look at the echo, yung yearbook namin, wala ako 1972.
But anyway, nung years after when I became mayor, pumunta sila don. Eh itong Lacson, “punta tayo, pero siya gyud yung nagpa-expel sa akin. (laughter) Buwisit oh, pagpunta doon, I was in Taiwan, o so yung may-ari doon ng isang ng isang motel, hotel, Abdul Aquino, nagpa-party siya. We have a very small community na Bedista. Karamihan diyan UP, Ateneo but San Beda, kokonti lang.
So, nagparty-party sila. Eh wala ako, sabi ng—you just invite the mother, ni—kay Mayor kung hindi siya makapunta. Eh, di nagpunta na nga ang nanay ko. Pag-introduce ngayon, sabi nila, ‘O Father Lacson, ito si nanay ni Mayor Duterte.’ Sabi ng nanay ko, ‘Oo nga pala, Father, yung graduation nila ni Rodrigo, natuloy ba?’ (laughter) Patay na kasi. Sabi ba naman, “Hindi man niya sinabi sa iyo, ma’am? Na-expel iyan.” (laughter) So pinatawag ako ng nanay ko and I was confronted by my mother. I knelt down and cried, and asked for forgiveness. Sabi ko, “Ma, patawarin mo talaga ako.” Para itong story, Please forgive me, Father.
My mother died two years ago. So iyan ang—kaya makita mo sa utak ko, ano ako, pero ayaw ko talaga yang—I never condone oppression. Kasi when I was a fiscal, I was only investigating three cases: cases against rebellion, military and police. Pero iyong military and police, basta duty-connected, in the performance of duty, binagsak ko talaga. Iyong mga rebellion, pag hindi masyado lalo na yang fabricated evidence. So I was just fair to everybody. And that’s what—I still have that value ‘no. Ayaw ko ng oppression. Ayaw ko nang—yung ginaganong tao, and we have this problem. And we have this problem in our body politic that money still runs.

Kaya the only way really is to—kaya kaya pinakamalaking budget ngayon is education. It is up by more than—magkano na ba? Siguro mga 35%. Then health, then agriculture. Wala, iyong defense, kokonti lang. Wala naman tayong kalaban. Ito lang namang ano, but this campaign against ano, I cannot—do not give me that—na sabihin mo, ah ito mahirap lang.

Kasi ang—you know—mga Chinese, do not be offended ha, I’ll tell you, my mother is a mestiza Maranao; my lolo sa mother side ko Chinese; my father is a Cebuano, and since we traced our lineage here through the father, if you would ask me, I am a Cebuano, a Visayan. But I never lived there even for a moment. Kaya sabi ko lang, itong mga Intsik, ganito yan, hindi Intsik na sabihin mo, maramihan isang transaksyon. Ang Intsik kokonti eh, dahan-dahan lang. Wholesale iyan. Maski mahirap ka kung makita lang sa singko pesos sa ‘yo, if I can get the whole of Tondo contaminated, the whole of Pandacan, at the end of the day, mas marami ang kita ng mga ito. Now, there’s no big time there. And they are cooking it, sometimes ships, on board lumuluto sila. Then, they would go nearer to the boundary, itapon nila yang shabu, balot ng plastik or bakal, drum, lagyan nila ng GPS. So iyong mga lieutenants, alam nila kung paano abutin yung—in a jiffy, faster than usual because of the GPS. Niluluto na nila yan, so give us a break, kaming taga-gobyerno.

As long as the apparatus is there, pero kung wala lang mag-a-accept ng delivery at saka iyong basura, wala nang runner, I am sorry, wrong—it is fundamentally wrong. Is it the only way up to this time? Yes. I’m sorry, I cannot ano, unless I can get hold of the entire gamut of the organized crime. Is Mexico into us? Yes. The Sineloa ng Mexico, iyong cartel nila, tayo ang transshipment. Kasi ini-interdict sila ng Amerikano, talagang binubomba sila eh. So dito sila sa transshipment. And for the—it is the Philippines, the right side hemisphere, dito sa South America, active dito is the Sineloa. I’m telling you now. I will never, never, never foist a lie on you. That is the truth.

Elections here, we will just have to educate our children. Until everybody is, and until the economy improves, they’d always be beholden to the feudal lords, and that is really the politicians. Ako lang ang nakalusot na—kasi sabi ko nga, destiny.

But if you remember, for all of my faults, try to recall, even during the debates if you’re listening, I was the only one invoking the name of God — ‘di ba? “If God wills it, If I become president or if God wants me to be president,” yun ang destiny noon. Wala akong pera, wala. But if God wants me to be president, I will be president. If God does not want me, I’m sorry, hindi ko talaga papel iyan sa buhay ko. And yet, I made it. Iyong lahat na gusto ninyo, hindi mo na kailangan sabihin sa akin.

I do not want corruption. Every meeting, I’d always say, please stop the smuggling. It’s not you but down the line, the lower echelons, iyong implementation, diyan ang nakawan. Please see to it that it is delivered to the rightful worker. You do not want oppressioner. I will never allow government to oppress people. You do not want—lahat. Simply you do not—gusto ninyo, tama lang. So I’ll give it to you, iyong tama na legal, period. And if I go out there, come back here and shoot me. I’d be glad to go to heaven. I’m tired. I have been in the service of this government for 40 years. Hindi madali, it’s by no means an easy thing to do. So wala na akong ambisyon because I have reached, sagad na.

Sabi ko nga, if you can amend the Constitution and you can do it by three to four years, and you can elect a new president under a parliament like France, I will willingly give up the remaining years of my term. I’ll go out. Walang drama, wala lahat. Magre-retire na ako. But I will be there to husband. So do not be afraid actually of whatever method that you would use because your guarantee is ako. I will never, never, never allow—sabihin ko talaga sila, huwag iyan kasi pag pinilit ninyo iyan, sisirahan ko itong Congress, huhulihin ko kayong lahat. Mamili kayo. Totoo, you do it properly. Do not—huwag mong lokohin ang tao. Pag pinilit ninyo iyan, sarado kayong lahat. So we’ll talk of Congress ten years from now. Matakot man iyan. Dahil ihalo ko kayo doon sa mga adik. (laughter)

Maraming salamat po. (applause)

* * *