‘Don’t f**k with me’: The words and wisdom of the Philippines’ next president

Philippine president-elect Rodrigo Duterte.

Crowds cheer as Pope Francis passes by in Manila. Pic: AP.

by A. Azim Idris -6th June 2016

JUST when we thought controversial Philippines President-elect Rodrigo Duterte couldn’t be any more audacious after saying journalists were killed for being corrupt last week, the foul-mouthed Davao city mayor on Friday dropped the ‘F-bomb’ in a veiled threat against media groups who called for a boycott of his press conferences until he apologizes.

But the tirade against the media may be little surprise, given that the 71-year-old has delivered a series profanity-laced speeches and press conferences lately. And there seems to be no sign of him stopping.

His abrasive comments, though, have not stopped the popularity he enjoys in his country, with more than 15 million Filipinos for voting for him in the last election.

While his public vulgarity may leave a bitter taste in the mouths of journalists covering him, his remarks somewhat mirror his prudence in running the country, which the Filipino public and the world at large highly anticipate when he takes office come the end of June.

‘Don’t Fuck With Me’

Responding to a call by international media group Reporters Without Borders to boycott him for saying journalists were killed for being corrupt, Duterte said pressmen “think too much of themselves”.

“Kill journalism in this country. Stop journalism in this country, if you are worth your salt. If not, then I will think lowly of you. [That would mean] that you are cowards,” Duterte told reporters in Davao City, as quoted by the Inquirer.

Asked to clarify on his response, Duterte said the media can stop covering him in Davao, but not the entire country.

“I cannot stop you.
“I was saying, you idiots, do not threaten me. I said I’m ready to lose the presidency, my honor or my life. Just do not fuck with me.”

The following is a recap of other controversial statements Duterte has made in recent weeks and months:

Catcalling a married female reporter

During a press conference that aired on national television, Duterte inappropriately wolf-whistled at Mariz Umali, a news anchor and reporter for the the GMA network.

This was the same press conference in which Duterte said all journalists who behaved like a “son of a bitch” could not expect to be exempt from assassination.

Her husband, Raffy Tima, also a news anchor and reporter, wrote a Facebook post titled ‘Catcalling My Wife Is Wrong On So Many Levels’, saying that while he expected it from Duterte, that didn’t make the action right. The post vent viral after being widely shared by Filipino netizens.

Duterte is known to flirt with female reporters, and has been dubbed a misogynist for his comments on a dead rape victim previously.

Accusing the Roman Catholic Church of hypocrisy

Despite the fact that the Philippines is considered a bastion of Catholicism, Duterte on May 22 called the dominant Roman Catholic Church  “the most hypocritical institution”, alleging it was fraught with graft and requests for favors from politicians.

He questioned the relevance of Catholic bishops who apparently persuaded Filipinos against voting for him in the election which he won by a landslide margin.

Accusing them of benefiting from public money, Duterte cursed the bishops, calling them “sons of bitches” as the poor could not even afford food and medicine. He later apologized for the comments.

Even the Pope was not spared from being called a ‘son of a bitch’ during state visit

In January this year, the firebrand mayor called Pope Francis a “son of a bitch” during his visit to the country, accusing the latter’s entourage during their visit to the Philippines of being the cause of massive traffic jams.

In his apology, Duterte said he intended to visit the pope in the Vatican city to ask for forgiveness. He later retracted the intention, opting to send a letter to the religious leader instead.

“I will kill my kids if they do drugs”

This was the response the mayor gave when asked what he would do if he found out his children were involved in narcotics use. He said this during the third and final presidential debate at the University of Pangasinan on April 24.

However, he said he was confident that none of his children were into drugs, one of the scourges he has fought as a city mayor.

Hard criminals will be killed

During his campaign trail in April, Duterte renewed his vow to kill criminals following his pledge to kill 100,000 criminals and dispose of many of them in Manila Bay so that the “fish will grow fat” from feeding on them.

“The drug pushers, kidnappers, robbers, find them all and arrest them. If they resist, kill them all,” he said. “Go ahead and charge me with murder, so I could also kill you.”

Known for his hardline tactics against criminals, Duterte – branded by TIME magazine as “The Punisher” – has been accused of supporting extrajudicial killings, including pulling the trigger in at least three shooting incidents involving criminals, as well as pushing a drug suspect out of a flying helicopter.

No apologies for rape comments

On April 17, a video emerged of Duterte speaking about the 1989 gang rape and murder of an Australian missionary worker by prisoners, making inappropriate comments about the victim’s beauty and how the rapists had gotten to her first.

“In my utter anger – that’s gutter language, street-speak – when I opened [the sheets covering the corpse], I was speaking angrily, ‘She’s so beautiful, she looks like an American actress. Son of a bitch, they beat me to her. Kill them all.’”

Though Duterte said he would not apologize for what he said, he did issue a general apology to the Filipino public, reported Philstar, saying: “I am sorry in general. I am sorry for the Filipino people. It is my style. It is my mouth. I said that in the heat of anger. But listen to the story behind.”

After earning criticism from the Australian and U.S. envoys in the country, Duterte told them outright that their governments could sever ties with the Philippines.