Pulong to father’s critics: ‘Don’t be onion-skinned’

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DAVAO City Rep. Paolo Duterte yesterday defended his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, from the criminal complaint filed by Rep. France Castro (PL, ACT), saying public servants should not be “onion-skinned” when criticized.

“We all have the right to file a complaint against anyone in court. But public servants should not be onion-skinned and should not make use of this right as a tool to silence critics,” the younger Duterte said in a statement.

Castro on Tuesday filed a criminal complaint against the elder Duterte before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office for threatening her life in a television interview, which was also posted online.

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The militant lawmaker, who is a member of the Makabayan bloc, filed a complaint of grave threat under Article 282 of the Revised Penal Code and Section 6 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 against the former chief executive for his statements in an October 11 interview with Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) where he defended his daughter Vice President Sara Duterte’s request for confidential funds under the proposed P5.768 trillion national budget for 2024.

The elder Duterte said in the interview that he told the Vice President that she should have been candid enough to tell members of the militant Makabayan bloc in Congress that they are really the target of the confidential funds that she was requesting and that he wants to kill Castro and all groups he branded as communists.

Rep. Duterte, the Vice President’s older brother, however said their father “has received much harsher and humiliating criticisms in the past but never filed a case against anyone.”

“As public servants, we all are under scrutiny by the Filipino people. If the former president has said something that threatened her, then maybe she should come out clean, ‘di yung nagtatago tayo sa likod ng so-called right na ito (instead of hiding behind this so-called right to file a complaint),” he said.

As a House member himself, Rep. Duterte said he also knows “a lot of things about left-leaning party-list representatives.”

“Tigilan na lang natin ang kadramahan at pagpapa-media (Let’s stop all the drama and media mileage),” he said.

Reacting, Castro said: “Bakit parang ako pa ang may kasalanan, samantalang buhay ko ang pinagbantaan at muling nired-tag? (Why is it that it now appears that it’s my fault when my life was threatened, and I was the one who was red-tagged again?)

“I filed a grave threat case against former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte because I am protecting myself, my family and my colleagues. Also, death threats and red-tagging aired on television must be stopped because it endangers the lives of people. It is far different from criticisms and should not be tolerated because it fosters the state of impunity. We have to draw the line,” she said.

Castro reminded Rep. Duterte of his father’s words when he was still president: “Dati ang sinasabi ng mga Duterte na kapag may ginawa silang masama kasuhan daw sila. Ngayong kinasuhan naman ay aatakehin pa ang biktima (The Dutertes used to say that they should be charged when they do something wrong. Now that it happened, they’re attacking the victim).”

“Besides the onion skin doctrine even in libel cases does not give license to anyone to issue death threats. Legitimate criticisms of public officials are valid, but what (former President) Duterte did was not criticism but threats. Also, such a doctrine neither discounts nor diminishes the right of persons to life and safety (which includes freedom from fear). Iba ang criticism sa death threat (Criticisms are different from death threats),” Castro said.

Rep. Arlene Brosas (PL, Gabriela), also a member of the Makabayan bloc, backed Castro, saying the ex-president’s threats and red-tagging “are not mere criticisms but serious dangers to the lives of individuals.”

“We would like to remind Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte that his father’s statement should be taken seriously, considering his bloody legacy of extrajudicial killings and political persecution under his administration,” Brosas said.

Brosas said it is also ironic that Castro is being called out by Rep. Duterte when the ex-president “hunted down ordinary people who criticized the government and even had a high school teacher arrested for merely voicing out his frustrations in social media.”

“Let’s drop this act of gaslighting and victim-blaming. The only people who need to come clean and face the consequences of their actions are those who have been hiding behind their confidential funds and avoiding public scrutiny,” she said.

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