📷Pres. Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte (PCO file photo)
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte accused President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of steering the country toward dictatorship and potentially declaring martial law.
In his speech at an indignation rally in Mandaue City, Cebu on Saturday evening, February 23, Duterte expressed grave concerns about the current administration’s direction, which echoed the actions of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
“Si Mr. Marcos is veering towards a dictatorship. Mopusta ko sa inyo, dili na manaog pagkahuman sa iyang termino (I bet with you, he will not step down after his term),” Duterte said.
“Pareha na sa iyang tatay, magkagubot na pud ta because ang iyang buhaton mag-declare na pud ug martial law pareho sa iyang papa (It will be like his father; we will have chaos again because he will declare martial law like his father),” he added.
On September 21, 1972, former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. imposed martial law on the country via Presidential Proclamation No. 1081.
In a comparable move, Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23, 2017, following the assault by Maute Group militants in Marawi City.
He emphasized that his martial law would mirror the one enacted by Marcos in 1972. Duterte’s martial law was eventually lifted in 2020.
Duterte, known for his blunt rhetoric, told the military and police to remain vigilant and not to support any illegal ambitions.
“Kamong mga sundalo ug pulis paminaw mo, kanang ambition sa usa ka tao ayaw mo ug pagsakay kay madugay o madali matapos man gyud na, unya illegal mana (To the soldiers and police, do not support the ambition of one person because sooner or later, it will end, and it is illegal),” Duterte said.
“Pamili mo, duha ra mana, naay sayop, naay tama (You have a choice; there are only two, right or wrong),” Duterte added.
The former president also raised questions about the sold gold reserves last year, hinting at potential mismanagement.
BestBrokers, an online aggregator, reported last September 2024 that the Philippine central bank led in gold sales among countries that disclosed their activities to the World Gold Council (WGC) in the first half of the year.
BestBrokers said that the Philippines sold 24.95 tonnes of gold from January to June, reducing the country’s reserves by 15.69% to 134.06 tonnes. This contrasts with the 1.33 tonnes added to the reserves in the previous year.
“Wala ta kabalo ang gold diin gibaligya ug pila (We don’t know where the gold was sold or how much),” Duterte said.
”They don’t bother to answer, and they don’t really bother to give a statement to the Filipino people,” he added.
However, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) justified the sale of its gold reserves during the first half of the year, calling it part of an “active management strategy.” (TCSP)
