Salamat po, Mayor. You can just sit down.

Alam mo Herbert pati Lani, I have one, two pages ang speech ko. I can finish this in about a half, one and a half minute. ‘Pag tapos na, mag-uwian na tayo. [laughter]

So hindi ko masabi ‘yung gusto ko because… I might just do justice to the guy who wrote this. Babasahin ko na lang po and allow me to talk a little bit further, a few more minutes so that I can convey to you what is in my heart and in my head.

I am happy to join you in this launching of this Crisis Monitoring and Management Center.

Through this Center, the MMDA would be able to fulfill its mandate of providing 24-hour assistance to the people of Metro Manila during emergency and crisis situations.

This place shall serve as the primary operations center where all government agencies and non-government organizations would converge to respond to all sorts of disasters – from petty vehicular accidents to massive floods, from transport strikes to devastating earthquakes.

Since its establishment two decades ago, MMDA has played an important role in the coordination and mobilization of government and non-government resources during crisis and emergency situations.

With the establishment of this Center, we are highlighting the need [for] the MMDA to be more responsive to the needs of our constituents in Metro Manila and surrounding provinces.

I therefore direct the MMDA to assume a lead role in government’s effort to maintain peace and order in our communities. Be vigilant not only in protecting our people from natural and man-made calamities, but also in our fight against illegal drugs, crime, and corruption.

I also direct the MMDA to initiate programs that would educate our people, especially the youth, on the importance of disaster preparedness and the need to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.

Be involved in policy formulation by coordinating with law enforcement agencies, the barangays, and LGUs.

Your active role, involvement in the shaping of the local and national government policies would not only immerse you in different aspects of governance, but also bring you closer to the agency, which is also for the people.

Let this Center serve as a concrete reminder to all of you that your primary concern must always be the safety, security, and the welfare of the people.

And it ends by saying, thank you very much and I wish you all the best!

Pwede na tayong mag-uwi po. [applause]

Now, you do not know me really because I am a stranger to you. I was not a national personality or figure and kayo naman hindi ninyo ako kilala because I am just a — or I was just a town mayor somewhere in Mindanao.

Iyong mga naka-kalaban ko sa eleksyon, kilala niyo lahat kasi taga-rito at mga kilalang pamilya. Ako po’y taga-Mindanao at ako po’y hindi statesman. [laughter]

Sabi nila, dapat Presidente ka, statesman ka. ‘You must be a statesman because you are already the President of a Republic.’ Well, I’m sad to say that I never really graduated from my traditional behavior, deportment and maybe my paradigm about what a public office should be.

Eh ako lang ‘yung mayor na just like the mayor, I go around, I fix things, I see to it that this project is done, almost personalized but never have I occupied a position where you direct only and you get angry only and you get sad only if things are not done the right way. But I would like to go to my… Diretsahan. I… Pahintuin mo nga ‘yang y*** na ‘yan. Ang ingay. [laughter]

When I was mayor — when I was a congressman. I was a congressman in 1999 to years 2000-2001. For the life of me, I never used… And even in Mindanao nandiyan si General Galvante who is now the LTO. I got him in… General Delfin Lorenzana was my… I never used the… Day one of my mayorship, I just used the pickup. Until today, I still use a pick up.

Hindi ako nagpapa-corny. I am not trying to be inordinately modest but the thing is, I am not used to it. So hanggang ngayon when I travel around, naka-pick up lang ako. But kung sa araw, I have to use the… Ewan ko kung sinong patayin sa amin, pero ‘yung gusto nila armorized ang gagamitin ko, baka raw ambushin ako. At sino mang mag-ambush sa akin? Ano bang makukuha mo? Wala naman akong pera.

You did not know me then and maybe you do not know me now. Kaya lang because of the high profile of the presidency, you get to know me from a distance and to the things that I talk about in public.

But I was running on a platform of just a few promises, about six only. That’s why during the presidential debate, I was only the first one who’d finished my piece, because I just limited my words to bullets, simply because I know that a minute and a half would not get me nowhere.

So ‘yun na lang ano ko. Pero tandaan lang ninyo ‘to ha, these things I commit to you now and I give you my word that I will do it. First I said, I will stop corruption. And it is being done. [applause]

Last night, we had a Cabinet meeting and I was trying really to avoid an embarrassing situation. But after reading the legal opinion of my office, vis-à-vis with the stand of the Cabinet members when he said that he was not informed of the legal opinion of his own office, hindi ako naka — I lost my, you know.

If you answer me with that kind of statement that you never read the legal opinion of the legal officer of your own office, it’s either you’re taking me for a stupid, an idiot or you are lying through your teeth with — sans the embarrassment or humiliation. Kaya ako na- p***** i**. So I said, “you’re fired.” I just simply said, “you’re fired.”

Ngayon, totohanan niyan. I was mayor of Davao for 23 years. I was a congressman for one term, three years. I was a vice mayor to my daughter when she was mayor. Iyong… Ewan ko kung kilala ninyo si Inday, ‘yung nagbugbog ng sheriff. She mauled the sheriff.

Well, anyway, ang promise ko ‘yan at tutuparin ko talaga ‘yan. You can talk to me and anybody can go to my office. I don’t call it Malacañan Palace. It’s a bit corny to me. It doesn’t… Most leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

That Malacañan is the historical residence of the foreigners who colonized us and imposed imperialism in our country. But anybody can go to my office and you can complain.

But to be sure that you are not deprived of the opportunity to air your grievance, ‘yung 8888 sa PTV-4 is very important. You can text your message, name the official if you know him, and if there is any shakedown, name the amount that’s being asked from you, name him. And I’ll give him the pleasure of meeting him face to face in my office. At tanungin kita kung anong gusto mo. Sipain ko itong p****** i**** ‘to o sampalin ko?

You know, the reason why until now, nandiyan pa ‘yang graft and corruption sa lahat, in any government — land registration, police clearance, and well, of course, licenses, General Galvante is there, it’s improving — because the Filipino is not assertive.

You have to assert your right. Kaya ‘pag hiningian ka kung maski sino pulis, any government office, land registration, titles and deeds, sabihin mo lang. Use the language that would hit. ‘P******* i** mo, nagbabayad ako sa iyo, I’m paying your salary and Mayor Duterte has said that I will create a scene or a scandal so that these things will be heard.’

At ‘pag marinig ako ng scandal, away, nagbarilan diyan, magtanong ako, ‘Why? What happened?’ And you can always say, in the Customs, Immigration. Huwag kayong bumayad. ‘Pag maghingi, tell them: ‘Look, I pay you. It is your duty to serve me. You address me as ‘sir.’ At ikaw, you are just a worker in government.’ All of us.

Secretary Mamondiong, Director General Galvante sa LTO, lahat kaming mga elected officials na mga — lahat, governors, mayors, we are just workers of government. That is why I do not use the word “government official” because that is what spoils the head of these idiots in government.

Sabihin mo lang maski saan. So in the airport, lalo na ‘yung mga mahirap. I do not want Customs to be — with the luggage. Tutal pag-deplane niyan, it goes into a bodega then it goes up to an almost like an escalator, the conveyor. Meron doong camera. And if you have something there inside your bag, that’s a contraband or a prohibited item, they can always search it there.

Hindi na kailangan umakyat ‘yan. They will call your attention, who owns this bag? Kaya ‘yung sabi ko, at the airport, if you have noticed, there’s no more opening of bags. Diretso na. And you know, in the past, when I was mayor, congressman tapos mga governor, we are just waved by. Even if there’s a kilometraheng baggage na lalo na galing Hong Kong, the traditional markets.

Kami, maski ilan dalhin naming bagahe, lusot-lusot. Pagdating ng OFW, dalawa, tatlo, apat, kalkalkin pa nila. I have prohibited that. There is no more opening of the bag. No more touching of the bag.

Wala ng… Huwag hawakan ang mga bag ng mga pasahero. ‘Pag hinawakan mo, tapos may nakita kang bala, para sa akin ikaw ‘yun.

Walang g***** Pilipino. No stupid Filipino would dare to travel abroad when he knows that here he is being checked for any explosives. Then when you go in to the terminals you have another check because you have the Customs there.

Kaya ‘yan ang pinagbabawal ko lahat. And many, a host of many other things. In the past, NEDA used to process papers at a rate of two, one year per document. I have ordered the Cabinet members to process it in one month.

And the directors, ‘yung patamad-tamaran. Ito ‘yung nawawala sa opisina at maghintay ka, land registrations ‘yung mga ganon. Regional directors you cannot simpy get hold of them. They do not report to the office or half of the time they are out.

So, my order is that they have to report the first in the morning and last to leave the office in the evening. And I only give them two weeks, 15 days to process the papers.

If it’s not done, you text 8888 and I will process the papers for you. Pero p****** i** ipakain ko muna sa kanya ‘yung iba. [applause]

Let’s stop this business of oppressing the people and give them the respite for the years of corruption and uncertainty. Maawa kayo sa Pilipino. I am not saying that I am a saint. I’ve had my faults, plenty. But, pera, corruption? I have no money but I have many wives. [laughter] You said that you need money to have so many wives. My wives are all rich just like the Speaker Alvarez. [laughter]

Now, he is facing a disbarment. This is a world of hypocrisy. Sino bang walang babae dito? Mayor Herbert, tumingin ka nga sa akin. [laughter] Look at me straight in the eyes.[laughter] And I’ll tell you that you’re a liar. [laughter]

That should be a non-issue actually. And do you know kung alam ba ninyo, Speaker Alvarez is not a Catholic. He’s just like me, his grandfather Chinese. Ang nanay niya Kalagan, Muslim. Those are the Muslims of Davao. My lola is a Maranao. I am half-Chinese, half-Maranao but my father was a Cebuano.

Ganon kami. Kaya maski magsabi ‘yang Bebot na ‘yan, marunong ‘yan. Sabi niya, lima, apat na. Walang tayong magawa. He never converted to Christianity. So he is not bound by the rules of the number of women that you can have.

Sabihin mo man, when you are charged Herbert, you need not really… Mademanda ka talaga balang araw. Huwag mong sabihin that you are a Catholic or you are a Protestant.

All you have to say is that… I my… An atheist. Kung Atheist ka, kasi the Christian, Judeo-Christian is one wife. But if you are an atheist, so? You can have as much as you want as long as you’re able to… The thing there is that you’re able to support the children. Iyon lang.

Why do you have to bother about how many wives? There are so… It’s a chauvinist statement. But really there are so many women and you’re so short a time in this world.[laughter] My God.

Now, dito tayo sa droga. Kaya talaga ako pumunta dito eh. In this drug campaign, just like the… I stake my life, my presidency, and my honor. But nothing will deter me from finishing this scourge, this war against drugs.

When I was mayor, I knew that there was a problem, a serious one. But I thought all along that it was a sporadic or intermittent supply that would come in and… But it was already being used extensively with its virulent effects shown by the behavior of the people.

It was not until after I became President when I had all the information, access to information na dumating sa akin that there were already three million drug addicts during the time of General Santiago of PDEA.

When I came in, I took in another General who was my chief of police many, many years ago. Kinuha ko, General Lapeña. And the last year he made, he came out with a figure and we have breached the one million mark. It was 1,800,000.

I do not know if it’s the same old guys registering, surrendering again. But I would be — place it at a very liberal number something like, palagay natin 3,500,000. Okay? Contaminated with drugs.

Now, forensic says that constant use of drugs shrinks the brain of a human being, which means that after his brain has shrunk, he is no longer viable for rehabilitation. That is the reason why walang nagagamot at mag-slide diyan because they have lost the — a considerable number of their cells in the brain.

Iyan ang problema ko because if you’d would notice, take a few steps back. Before I became a President, Alan… Senator Alan Cayetano has this figure, he gave it to me. There were 77,000 spanning four years, three years deaths connected with drugs, either self-induced injuries or robbery with rape plus murder, robbery with rape plus homicide.

Iyon ang problema ko. And I’d placed the number I said at a conservative, it’s about 3, 7. How many of them are already beyond repair? I do not have the correct figure.

But I know that they’re walking around completely insane. And that is why one of the reasons why I ran was because I was aware that it was really getting out of hand and so many idiots from other countries tinkering, messing up, f**** the issue there.

Alam nila, with about three or four million, if we just add the figures, what am I now supposed to do with the poor guys who died in the hands of the addicts, the criminal and the drug lords who kept on producing the shabu?

The Church, itong mga NGO, they would say, ‘Duterte he is killing the drug lords but he’s killing the poor guys, the runners and everything.’

You know when you are up to this kind of war, because I declared war, you have to destroy the enemy. The enemy is the apparatus of the drugs, the organization. You have to kill the drug lord and my God, I am very sorry I said. You have to kill also even if they are the poor ones. And that statement came from the Church, not from me.

But you know, Inquirer and ABS-CBN would only print half of your statement and say, ‘Duterte will kill the poor.’ It does not give you the com — slant, they call it. That is why I’m a lawyer, I’m a President but you know I was forced to be vulgar in my… Kaya sinasabi ko diyan sa Inquirer, huwag kayong magbasa niyan basura ‘yan. Iyan si Prieto, Prieto, mukha ni Prieto, the owner? Kita mo mukhang pera. And just like ABS-CBN. You’re all bunch of s***. [applause]

Noong eleksyon sinabi ninyo na ako may 211 million in the bank. And I was trying to explain to them. But you know Inquirer and ABS-CBN just keep on throwing the garbage. Pera-pera because I could not — I didn’t have the money to pay them.

My political party was just a Mindanao group, PDP. So I was really the… Now that I’m President, I’m asking everybody including Central Bank and all the banks around, open your accounts because if I have, half, even half of what they say, I will give you my resignation tomorrow. [applause] I will resign. Iyan ang… That is my commitment to you the Filipino people.

And if there is any child of mine, my daughter, my son, I have three children, if they get involved even in graft, I will step down. Masiguro ninyo ‘yan. But me as President, when I deal with the people of government, I draw the line. You either go or I go but we cannot stay together. I have said there will be no corruption in my government.

I have fired two fraternity brothers, two associate commissioners of Immigration, one in NIA, and I replaced him immediately. I was looking at the budget 150 billion. I was you know very careful. You just give me a whiff and you’re out.

I said last night I fired a Cabinet member in a full Cabinet meeting because I did not like his answer because it was really a plain lie. Para siyang nakausap na… Parang ginagawa niya akong g***. ‘So in that case, you might leave the room — you might leave the room because you’re fired. I am dismissing you.’ So ganon.

That is… I am very exacting. So I should be exacting on myself also. Find the 211 million that they are using during the campaign. I told you I do not have that amount. But if there is an account tapos pangalan ko, I will resign.

In the matter of drugs, there will be no let-up until the last day of my term. And that would be five years and a few months. Say that no more killings? No, there will be killings, but only to those crimes na or allegedly crimes na napatay ng pulis. I gave the orders and I was very exact and specific. Go out and hunt for them, capture them, apprehend them if it’s still possible. But if you are confronted with a violent—with violence, with violent equipment or gun and you feel that your life is in danger, kill the idiot. That was my order.

And I stand by my [raises his right hand] I take full, criminal, if there is any, civil liability for those crimes committed by the law enforcement, by the military pursuant to that order of mine. Go out and hunt for them. Arrest them if possible. But if you are confronted with violence and you think that you will die, I would rather see a criminal, dead criminal there than a dead sol… And to date, I have lost 32 soldiers and about 29 policemen since we started the operation.

In Mindanao, it is fueling the ISIS. What is fueling the ISIS in the Arab countries are the oil. In Mindanao they are using shabu. And that is why in operation against shabu laboratories, I lose soldiers because their compound, their cooking kitchen there are guarded by two, three M60 machine guns and my soldiers and police just have to fight it out just like an ordinary shooting war.

So hindi matatapos ‘yun and I will hit hard. And I told the PNP to re-configure the men because some of them were into it and a lot them were… Well, I said if you are a policeman or a military man and you are into this kind of business, you will go first. I will prioritize your death.

Kayong mga pulis, lay off, stay off. If you want this country to experience wala ng patayan or at least minus the dead drug lords and ano, drop the shabu now. Drop it tonight and tomorrow there will be no deaths connected with drugs. Drop it now. If you are into it drop it now. Otherwise, one day you will really die.

So the others were the economics. And I told the — this Makati Business Club, si Del Rosario inimbita niya ako, he invited me for — as speaker. But I told him that, you know, Mr. Del Rosario, I am not an economist, I am not into the business world because my job back home and before I became a mayor was I was a prosecutor. If we talk about criminal law, I can lecture to you on and on. But if you ask me about questions on policy, economics I have none. But I’ll just give you the plain simple economics that I learned from college and high school. But I was not good at it even, 75 lang ako doon.

So they invited me, and you know what? Del Rosario after allowed himself to be interviewed at nagdaldal kasi wala daw akong economic agenda. Gunggong ka pala eh. Sinabi ko sa iyo wala akong alam ng economics eh bagsak nga ako first grading diyan [laughter]. I remember getting 68. Itong mga tao talaga.

Well anyway, I have allowed the… Sonny Dominguez who was my childhood friend. We were classmates since grade — Kindergarten until high school. He was the valedictorian. He studied in Harvard for his and he’s running… He used to be the Secretary of Agriculture during Cory’s time. He was once upon a time the President of PAL and I think he was BPI official.

I got him and together with Mon Lopez and Pernia of the Economics sa UP and they are running the country.

We’re doing well. I’m sure I was correct in going to China and making friends with them. I did not commit a mistake. I said that if you see things that was sprucing up now, it’s because of our friendship with China.

Noon kasi ‘yung banana exportations natin suffered a lot. Maraming diperensya, the quality and ganun. So I went to China and I said, you know Mr. Xi Jinping, I’m not here to ask for anything. I’d just like to find out what’s wrong with our products. We used to have a vibrant export-import and as a matter of… There was one time that the balance of trade was almost even. Now, we are no longer exporting and we keep on importing your things. So he really… Because they thought all the while that I was dovetailing the foreign economic policies of Ame… Sabi ko, no. I want to run my own line. And now our bananas are back into business, it’s 100 percent restoration. The pineapples a little bit late because there were some lots that are no longer planted because of the slow down but now they are being planted again and we are hitting about 60 percent.

In the fullness of God’s time, we would be exporting all because China said, ‘we will buy all.’ Half of the year China is frozen like Russia. They need everything and they said, ‘never mind if it is not in good quality, we will wash it to qualify it.’ O, ayaw mo pa yan? [applause]

So I said that… And I’m going to Putin this… But I have to go to China next month for the “One Road, One Belt.”

I have to go to Putin to talk about opening a new market somewhere in the east of Europe, eastern Europe. And I want to learn something from him. Maybe someday America but that’s a long shot.

Putin is, how do you stay single and be happy all the time, Mr. Putin? I’d like to ask him that question. Give me the secret.

Ah no, I’m going there just to make friends. I assure, you ladies and gentlemen, I have no military alliances with anybody.

We have a standing treaty with America. It was signed 1950, RP-US Pact. So we kind of… We are not allowed to, you know, enter into another alliance because that is a treaty and it says there it’s between America and the Philippines. Military.

So you can join any economic circuit there but we are not allowed to… I am not interested in military alliances and I… As I was talking to Mr. Abe of Japan. He had breakfast in my house, in my little house, and I said… And he said that nothing of this sort for us.

And I said, yes correct, Mr. Premier, because if you go to war now and you explored all the rockets of Russia, China, America, Britain and all, it will be the end of the world. So see you in heaven if that happens.

So I’m took quite a bit of time. Ayon lang muna, I’m stressing corruption and… Hindi talaga ako pwede, ‘di talaga ako pwede sa totoo lang. Hindi ako nagpapa-corny, hindi ako nagpa — sa Bisaya nagpahilas.

But I am not just up to it and I said give the people a respite of the years of corruption, which has really pulled our country down. Kaya hindi tayo maka-angat, ganon eh.

Kasi komo ipasok, puro hingi, puro — patay. Ngayon, I am making you the ideal employer. We are the workers of government. So kami, we are just your trabahante.

You order us what you want to do through your representatives, the congressman and mayor. You elected them so give them the importance so that they can echo or re-echo what the people want.

But ako sabihin ko sa inyo iyong pera ninyo pati resources of government will be — will be used exclusively for your benefit. It does not include the pockets of the workers of government.

Thank you and good day.

—END—