International

Kill any drug addict you know, Philippines President tells citizens

Published

8 years ago

July 1, 2016

Ripples Nigeria

President Rodrigo Duterte of Philippines has called on Filipinos to kill any drug addict they know.

Duterte, 71, who was sworn-in as president on Thursday, after a landslide victory at the presidential election.

His campaign was dominated by threats to kill tens of thousands of criminals in a relentless war on crime, and tirades against the nation’s elite that cast him as an incendiary, anti-establishment hero.

Duterte made the call when he visited a Manila slum in the evening of his swearing in, unleashing profanity-laden threats against drug traffickers in front of a crowd of about 500 people.

“These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, don’t go into that, even if you’re a policeman, because I will really kill you,” the head of state told the audience.

“If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful.”

The President had in the past alleged that some police officers were engaged in drug trafficking.

Repeating a favourite campaign refrain, the new president also said it would make good business sense to set up funeral parlours.

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“I assure you, you won’t go bankrupt. If your business slows I will tell the police, ‘Do it faster to help the people earn money’.”

After taking the oath of office at the Malacanang presidential palace, as he took over from Benigno Aquino, Duterte had given notice there would be dark days during his six years in office.

“The ride will be rough but come join me just the same,” Duterte said in his remarks, which opened with familiar themes about the need to instil discipline in a graft-infested society.

“The problems that bedevil our country today which need to be addressed with urgency are corruption, both in the high and low echelons in government, criminality in the streets and the rampant sale of illegal drugs in all strata of Philippine society and the breakdown of law and order.”

Duterte, a lawyer who earned a reputation as an authoritarian figure as mayor of the southern city of Davao over most of the past two decades, said these problems were symptoms of eroding Filipino faith in their leaders.

During campaigns, Duterte has said he would issue shoot-to-kill orders to the security services and offer them bounties for the bodies of drug dealers. He also encouraged ordinary Filipinos to kill suspected criminals.

He also said 100,000 people would die in his crackdown, with so many dead bodies dumped in Manila Bay that fish there would grow fat from feeding on them.

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