FORMER President Rodrigo Duterte rated the performance of President Marcos Jr. and his administration 6.5 out of 10, in terms of handling the illegal drugs situation and in moving the economy forward.
Duterte, father of current Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio, said he is hopeful that it would eventually go up to a seven or an eight.
“Ok pa (It’s still okay). I think in a scale, just to have a visual… in a scale of 1one to 10, maybe the administration is performing like a six, six and one-half,” he said when asked by Pastor Apollo Quiboloy to rate the administration’s campaign against illegal drugs.
He said in his talks with policemen, he learned there has been a resurgence of illegal drugs in the country.
Duterte, who had vowed to defeat illegal drugs during his term as president, said he had his chance but he had some shortcomings and shortfalls and eventually ran out of time to make good with his promise.
He said what is important is to address the illegal drug situation because “the biggest loser would be the people of the Republic of the Philippines.”
The former President said he is also giving the same rating of a six to six-and-a-half, with 10 being the highest, to Marcos and his administration in terms of handling the economy.
“Ok pa tayo, iyung value ng pera natin (we are still okay, the value of our currency),” he said.
Duterte said no country could rate themselves a 10 in terms of performance.
He said the highest would be around eight to eight and one half, while the rating average is around seven which he feels the administration can eventually achieve.
Duterte dismissed reports he may be involved in a destabilization plot against the administration. He said he does not see why he was being dragged into the issue although he said he met with some retired military officials.
AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner has said there is no destabilization plot, and that his remarks last Friday before troops in Zamboanga City were taken out of context. He clarified that what he said was that he heard talks about destabilization efforts.
Duterte said there may be some other issues that need to be addressed such as corruption.
He said once there is massive corruption in government and it becomes uncontrollable and unabated, that is the most likely time that destabilization or ouster plots would surface.
What would bring the government down is the drain, is if the people find out that you spent their money for your personal use,” he said in mixed English and Filipino.
Duterte said Marcos should be able to identify the weak points in his administration especially if it involves corruption. He said the usual “suspects” in corruption involve the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
The former President, apart from fighting illegal drugs and criminalities, also advocated against graft and corruption.
At the House, Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr. said destabilization moves will only hurt the country’s economy and make life more difficult for Filipinos.
“We cannot afford any political and economic instability. A plot to overthrow the administration won’t do us any good,” Barzaga said. “We don’t need their adventurism. We have a working government duly elected by an overwhelming majority of the people, more than 31.6 million margin. They have to respect the people’s decision.”
The senior lawmaker said instability is the last thing the country needs now as it continues to face economic challenges, particularly controlling inflation, which remains the most urgent national concern of the majority of Filipinos based on a Pulse Asia survey last September.
As prices of basic commodities surge, Barzaga said talks of a brewing plot by retired military officials to destabilize Marcos Jr.’s administration “will only cause the economy another black eye.”
“We don’t need their adventurism. We have a working government duly elected by an overwhelming majority of the people, more than 31.6 million margin. They have to respect the people’s decision,” Barzaga said. — With Wendel Vigilia