A fuming President Rodrigo Roa Duterte slammed the country’s top magistrate and threatened to speed up her impeachment process as her ‘enemy.’
“I’m putting you on notice that I’m your enemy and you have to be out of the Supreme Court,” Duterte said in a press conference on April 9, Monday, before his flight to attend the Boao Forum for Asia.
“I will see to it and after that, I will request the Congress go into the impeachment right away,” the President added.
Duterte was reacting to Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s speech on the same day, who accused the President to be behind the moves to oust her off her position in the High court through Solicitor General Jose Calida’s quo warranto petition against her.
The President, however, took it as a ‘challenge’ to ‘count himself in’ the impeachment complaints against her.
“Ikaw, Sereno, sinabi ko na sa’yo hindi ako nakialam (You, Sereno, I already told you that I did not have a hand in this). If you are insisting, then count me in. Count me in and I will egg Calida to do his best ako na mismo ang maglakad (I will even process it personally),” Duterte continued.
The Chief Executive labeled Sereno as “bad for the Philippines,” and said that he will ask Speaker of the House Pantaleon Alvarez to “fast-track” the impeachment.
“Now this time, I’m asking the Congressmen and the Speaker, ‘Do it now.’ ‘Wag ninyong dramahin (Do not add drama). Or else, I will do it for you,” he added.
Out of rage, Duterte cursed and also threatened to ‘hit’ Sereno.
“P*tang ina sinabi nang ‘di ako nakikialam eh. Sabihin mo sa kanya, let the world know. Talagang makialam ako. Ako nagpapasensya lang ko, babae (Son of a b*tch, I already said that I am not interfering. Tell her, let the world know. I will really do something now. I was just being patient because she is a woman,” the President said.
He then added, “Sinasabi ko na sa’yo na hindi ako nakikialam. O sige ka d’yan, daldal nang daldal, upakan kita (I already told you that I do not have a hand on this. Keep talking and I will hit you).”