After former President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday night accused him of being “bangag” or high on drugs, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. fired back yesterday saying that his predecessor’s thinking may have been addled by the opioid fentanyl.

Before departing for Vietnam for an official visit, Marcos said Duterte had been taking fentanyl for so long, thus his biting words against him. “I think it’s the fentanyl,” the President said.

“The last time he disclosed this to the public was around five or six years ago,” Marcos told reporters.

“After such a duration, the impact on one’s health is substantial. I hope his medical team is diligently addressing these issues and not neglecting the potential problems that may arise,” he added.

Duterte in 2016 said that he had previously taken fentanyl, a potent opioid, as a pain killer for the spinal injury he sustained in a motorcycle accident when he was younger.

According to Duterte, his doctor made him stop using fentanyl on learning that he was “abusing the drug” by using more than the prescribed patches.

Last Sunday evening, Duterte said that Marcos was a drug addict and suggested that he might face a similar fate as his father, the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., who was ousted from power in 1986 in the EDSA People Power Revolution.

Duterte urged Marcos Jr. to avoid the “divisive and bloody” path his father took.

In his speech during a prayer rally in Davao City, held on the same day Marcos kicked off his Bagong Pilipinas rally at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila, Duterte said he had “evidence” that linked Marcos to “risky situations.”

“When I was the mayor, the (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) presented evidence to me. Your name was on the (drug) list. I didn’t want to reveal it because we were friends, or if not friends, at least acquaintances,” Duterte said.

He expressed concern that Marcos was being manipulated by his wife, Liza Araneta-Marcos, and House Speaker Martin Romualdez and warned that he was “messed up” and unfit for the presidency.

Risky

“You’re getting into risky situations. Mr. President, you might follow the path your father took. That’s what scares me, I don’t want that to happen to you,” Duterte said.

He further claimed that Marcos’ alleged drug addiction could lead to “chaos” and that he would then urge the military to intervene.

Duterte also claimed that the intent behind the People’s Initiative was to boost the Marcos family’s hold over the country.

“Don’t be fooled. You know, in parliament, the ambition mostly comes from Liza Marcos and even from Romualdez,” the former President said. “That’s why I’m telling you now, Bongbong Marcos was messed up back then, and now that he’s the President, he’s still messed up.”

Duterte also expressed concern about Marcos’ pushing the limits of the Filipino people’s patience, pointing out the potential for social unrest if the government continues on its current course.

“Mr. President, you forced us, you’re testing the waters. You are pushing the limits of the Filipino people’s patience. Don’t ever do that. Don’t do that, don’t continue that because there will be chaos if we aren’t compelled through rallies, through our voices, and our sentiments,” Duterte said.

The PDEA later issued an official statement to say that Marcos Jr., contrary to Duterte’s claim, was never on its watchlist.

However, the PDEA pointed out that the agency was only activated in 2002, well after Duterte’s first mayoral term from 1988 to 1998. But Duterte went on to serve as Davao mayor from 2001 to 2010 and from 2013 to 2016.

“It is worthwhile to note that President Marcos Jr. was never in our National Drug Information System since its inception in 2002,” the PDEA said

The NDIS serves as the agency’s intelligence database for drug personalities, gathering information from various law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

Furthermore, PDEA clarified that Marcos Jr.’s name was also not included in the “narco-list” or the “Duterte list,” which later evolved into the Inter-Agency Drug Information Database under the Duterte administration.

This list, compiled in 2016, underwent continuous validation and re-validation.

“Based on all available evidence and records, we can confidently assert that President Marcos Jr. is not and has never been on our drug watch list,” PDEA said.

A scam

For his part, Romualdez called Duterte’s tirades “budol-budol” or a scam.

“Unless you have proof of your allegations behind your call to our beloved President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to step down, better think first. Think first and bring out the proof. Because we know what you are saying is not true,” said Romualdez, a cousin of Marcos.

The House chief labeled Duterte’s attempt to topple Marcos from the presidency as premature and prodded him to show some respect for the 31 million Filipinos who put him in office.