President Rodrigo Duterte has vowed to reveal the frailties of leading Palace hopefuls, saying he will soon name an aspirant who is “too corrupt” and another who is “unfit” for the job.
In his public address which aired late Tuesday, Duterte said he shall disclose information about “what’s wrong” with aspirants in due time since it is his duty to tell the truth to the public.
Likewise, he is duty-bound to help Filipinos choose the next Philippine leader, the President said.
“Maybe — by the last month of (my term) — I will personally name the candidates and maybe what’s wrong with them that the public must know,” he said.
“There are things that you must know and I need to reveal them because we are talking of elections; we are talking of our country and the next rulers,” Duterte added.
The popular Chief Executive did not name names, but said the purported corrupt aspirant has received flak from the Chinese community.
“There is someone there who cannot be president for being too corrupt. People think they are clean but those who had business transactions with them, even the Chinese, are complaining they are too corrupt,” he said.
Duterte added that concerned groups had reached out to him to ask what their next moves should be.
He said he told them that he could sue the male aspirant for violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Corrupt Practices Act. The President did not elaborate.
Duterte also claimed that another presidential contender is lacking in experience and knowledge needed for the top government post.
He described the aspirant as a person who says “something wrong every day.”
“There is someone who I think should not be a president. The person is kind of lacking intelligence, very lacking. They will say something wrong every day, even the fundamentals of a presidential aspirant,” the President said.
His revelations, he added, came from his personal experiences and observations.
Duterte denied he was politicking and justified his upcoming revelations by saying that he should advise the public on choosing the next president.
“This is not personal. There is nothing at stake for me, I have no reason to pick a fight,” he added.
He said he can opt to keep silent and not butt heads with anyone, but that would be a disservice to Filipinos.
The public need not believe him and it is up to the electorate to decide on the 9 May elections, Duterte added.
Duterte previously said that his administration would be neutral in the elections. He has yet to endorse a presidential candidate for the upcoming elections.
His political party PDP Laban was left without a standard-bearer after a series of substitutions and withdrawals.
It, however, adopted presidential daughter Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte as its vice-presidential candidate. The party is still deliberating the presidential bet it will endorse and campaign for.
Duterte has previously criticized presidential candidates Vice President Leni Robredo, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso and Senator Manny Pacquiao.
He expressed annoyance with Bongbong after his daughter Sara chose to slide to the vice-presidential derby to be the running mate of the Ilocos Norte stalwart.
Duterte has hurled insults at Robredo for her criticism of government policies, as well as at Pacquiao and Moreno, for expressing views critical of the administration ahead of the filing of candidacies.
