MANILA – Despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s expression of frustration over seemingly endless drive against corruption and illegal drugs, his Cabinet members remain hopeful that he will finish his term until 2022.
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Officer-in-Charge Eduardo Año on Wednesday said he believes the President was just emphasizing his fight against corruption and illegal drugs when Duterte said he is thinking of stepping down.
“I’m not in the position to determine whether what he’s saying is serious or not. But well, we hope that the President will finish his term because there are so much work to do,” Año said in press briefing about government’s campaign against illegal drugs in Malacañang
Año said the country still needs Duterte, saying his commitment and sincerity to fulfill his campaign promises have served as their inspiration in working in the government.
“I believe our vigor and energy in fighting drugs come from his leadership and all these things will not happen if not of his sincere and conviction to fight drugs,” he said.
He said there is no alibi for the Cabinet members to “fail in our mission”.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque said it was not the first time that Duterte has told his Cabinet members that he is thinking of stepping down.
“Well, it’s not the first time the President has said that. I think to me, it’s really just venting out, sometimes out of exhaustion, sometimes out of frustrations,” Duque said in a separate Palace weekly economic briefing on Wednesday.
“But I think the President has manifested, on the other hand, a sheer political will to take on a lot of really very difficult issues that have not been addressed as adequately as he is addressing them today,” he added.
Duque said the President needs all the support that “he can muster” from every people in government and the Filipino people in addressing the country’s problems.
“You know, it’s wrong to think that the President is going to solve all the problems for us. I think, please disabused our minds, we need everyone, you know, in government to really rally behind and support the government in all of his substantive initiatives,” he said.
Asked if he will echo Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez’s advice to President to take a vacation, Duque said it would be up to the President whether to go on a break.
“It’s wrong to second guess the President. So let’s leave it to him if he wants to go on a break then let’s respect it. I’m not in a position to make any recommendation, at least in so far as I am concerned,” Duque said.
He believes health would not be the problem for the 73-year-old President whom he described as hardworking and full of life.
“Every time I attend the Cabinet meetings of the President, I can say, he is full of life, very active, very sharp and obviously, it does not suggest that he has health problem. What we can say is that the President seems very strong. As you can see, he is almost everywhere all the time,” Duque said.