Paolo Duterte hits back at Jonvic Remulla over 'sabog' remark

Davao City 1st District Representative Paolo "Pulong" Duterte lashed out at Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla after the latter claimed that Duterte was just "wasted" (sabog) when he released a statement claiming that Senator Bong Go also has an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

"Ako pa talaga ang sinabi mong 'high' at 'sabog,' Secretary Jonvic Remulla? Ako? O baka nagkamali ka lang ng tinutumbok at ang gusto mo talagang sabihin ay iyong mga nasa Malacañang? (Am I really the one you're calling 'high' and 'wasted,' Secretary Jonvic Remulla? Me? Or maybe you just got your targets mixed up and who you really want to talk about are the ones in Malacañang?)" he said, taking a swipe at the drug use allegations against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

"Kung gusto mo talagang malaman kung sino ang 'high' at sino ang 'sabog,' simple lang naman ang solusyon. Magpa-hair follicle drug test tayo. Sama mo na ang boss mo at asawa't anak niya. Para isang testing na lang, tapos ang usapan, (If you really want to know who is 'high' and who is 'wasted,' the solution is simple. Let's undergo a hair follicle drug test. Bring your boss, along with his wife and children. So it's just one testing session, and the discussion is over,)" he added in his Facebook post.

The word war stemmed from Remulla confirming that he was unaware of any arrest warrant for Senator Bong Go, denying Duterte's claim.

“Hindi ko nga alam, kaya baka sabog noong sinabi niya kasi siya lang ang nakakita noon eh. Sa amin wala pa naman, (I really don't know, so he might have been wasted when he said that because he's the only one who saw it. On our end, there is nothing yet,)" the DILG secretary said.

However, Duterte gave a different meaning to Remulla's use of the word "sabog."

He said, "Pero baka ibang sabog din ang tinutumbok mo, Jonvic. Baka 'yung sabog sa kapangyarihan. Sabog sa korapsyon. Sabog sa kayabangan. (But maybe you are referring to a different kind of 'sabog,' Jonvic. Maybe 'sabog' on power. 'sabog' on corruption. 'sabog' on arrogance.)"

"Ug sabog sa pagtuo nga ang katawhan dili na kabalo motan-aw kung kinsa ang nagtrabaho ug kinsa ang nagpapa-pogi lang sa kamera, (And 'sabog' in the belief that the public no longer knows how to see who is truly working and who is just trying to look good for the camera,)" Duterte said.

"Kaya bago ka muling mamigay ng bansag na 'high' at 'sabog,' baka mas mabuting tumingin ka muna sa salamin. Baka nandoon ang sagot sa mga tanong mo, (So before you hand out labels like 'high' and 'wasted' again, maybe it's better if you look in the mirror first. The answer to your questions might be right there,)" the lawmaker concluded.