‘I will end my term fighting’
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Mon, 22 Jul 2019 16:15:01 +0000
Buoyed by the victory of his allies in the recent elections and his high approval rating, President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday vowed to continue the reforms that his administration started and boldly push for the revival of the death penalty to curb illegal drugs and corruption in government.
Addressing a joint session of Congress, Duterte said the landslide victory of the administration candidates and his high approval rating inspired him “with determination to pursue relentlessly what we have started at the start of my administration.”
“Few men imbued with the will and the courage to do what he believes is right and just and whatever be the opposition in terms of numbers and noise, makes a majority. For it is not the eagle in the fight, but the fight in the eagle that matters. Believe me, I will end my term fighting,” he said.
The President, who was almost an hour late for his fourth State of the Nation Address, expressed disappointment that the problems on corruption and illegal drugs remain rampant three years after he took his post.
“It has been three years since I took my oath of office, and it pains me to say that we have not learned our lesson. The illegal drug problem persists. Corruption continues and emasculates the courage we need to sustain our moral recovery initiatives,” he said.
Duterte said the Marawi siege, which, according to him, was funded by drug money, was one of the reasons why he was advocating for the reimposition of capital punishment.
“During that Marawi siege, [there were] tons of shabu worth millions and millions of pesos. Drug money killed 175 and wounded [2,101] of my soldiers and policemen in that five-month battle,” he said.
“I am aware that we still have a long way to go in our fight against this social menace,” he added.
He said even with the help of communities, the drug menace would not be eliminated unless corruption was eradicated, as well.
“However, the drugs will not be crushed unless we continue to eliminate corruption that allows this social monster to survive. I respectfully request Congress to reinstate the death penalty for heinous crimes related to drugs, as well as plunder,” the President said.
Zero tolerance
Duterte reiterated that his zero tolerance for corruption remains the key policy of his administration.
“I have fired or caused the resignation of more than a hundred officials and appointees of government without regard to relationship, friendship and alliance. There is no sacred cow, as the saying goes, in my administration,” he said.
The President said he was “grossly disappointed” over the alleged misuse of state health insurance funds on “ghost” dialysis treatments, which he said proved that corruption is pervasive.
A former employee of WellMed Dialysis and Laboratory Center in Quezon City last month bared that the clinic made payment claims for dead patients from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. from 2016 to 2018.
“Huge amounts of medical funds were released to cover padded medical claims and imaginary treatment of ghost patients. The government is conned of millions of pesos, which could be used to treat illnesses and, possibly, save the lives of many,” he added.
Last week, Duterte placed 64 personnel of the Bureau of Customs under floating status because of their supposed link to corruption.
“[I] fight corruption still until now. However, much is to be done in ensuring our responsiveness to the people’s needs, based on the complaints received by this contact center Bayan,” he said.
He again urged the public to make a scene or file complaints against officials who were not doing their job or were extorting money.
Complaints against government officials or agencies can also be relayed through the hotline 8888.
In July 2016, the Duterte administration launched the 8888 hotline after the President issued Executive Order 6, institutionalizing 8888 as the Citizens’ Complaint Center.
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