Palace: PBBM takes on corruption with due process, not EJK-style acts

By Darryl John Esguerra, Philippine News Agency

Castro said Marcos does not believe in shortcuts, contrasting his approach with the previous administration’s controversial war on drugs, which was marred with allegations of extrajudicial and vigilante-style killings. (PCO file photo)

MANILA – Malacañang on Wednesday hit back at Vice President Sara Duterte’s criticism of the Marcos administration’s anti-corruption campaign, particularly on the handling of the alleged corruption in flood control projects, saying the President is acting decisively while upholding due process.

“Hindi po natin alam kung siya po ba ay matagal na nag-stay sa isang kweba at hindi niya nalalaman ang mga nagaganap at hindi niya nalalaman ang agarang isinasagawa ng Pangulo (We don’t know if she has been staying in a cave too long that she is unaware of what is happening and what the President is immediately carrying out),” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing.

Castro said Marcos does not believe in shortcuts, contrasting his approach with the previous administration’s controversial war on drugs, which was marred with allegations of extrajudicial and vigilante-style killings.

“Ang pag-iimbestiga po ay hindi kailangang isang araw lang. Hindi po naniniwala ang Pangulo sa isang EJK-style, walang imbestigahan, libingan ang hantungan. Ang gusto ng Pangulo, due process (Investigations cannot be completed in a day. The President does not believe in an EJK-style where there is no investigation and only the graveyard awaits. The President wants due process),” she said.

Castro also recalled a 2017 statement where then-president Rodrigo Duterte, the Vice President’s father, admitted to being corrupt.

“Kung meron man pong sistema ang Bise Presidente kung paano agarang masusugpo ang korapsyon, ito sana po ay ibinigay na rin po niya sa kanyang ama (If the Vice President had a system to immediately end corruption, she should have given it to her father),” she said.

She pointed to the creation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) to investigate anomalous flood control projects as proof that Marcos is taking concrete action.

Castro capped her remarks with a jab, tagging the Vice President as a “comedienne.”

“May nakita po pala tayong talent ng Bise Presidente. Magaling po pala siyang magpatawa kahit hindi siya komedyante (We discovered the Vice President has a talent after all – she’s good at making people laugh even if she’s not a comedian).”