MANILA - Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano on Tuesday dismissed President Rodrigo's criticism of him and his party-list as "cheap" tirades.
"Sa panahon ngayon, napaka-cheap ng posisyon ng gobyerno. Simula sa posisyon ng Pangulo, napaka-cheap magsalita ngayon. Parang you can fire away irresponsible comments anytime and get away with it," Alejano, who filed the first impeachment complaint against Duterte, said in an interview with radio DZMM.
(Nowadays, the government's position is cheap. Starting with the office of the President, official statements are now so cheap. It seems that you can fire away irresponsible comments anytime and get away with it.
Duterte on Monday mocked Alejano for mulling supplemental ouster complaints against him over allegations that he had secretly authorized China to survey Benham Rise off the Philippines' Pacific coast.
Duterte on Monday mocked Alejano for mulling supplemental ouster complaints against him over allegations that he had secretly authorized China to survey Benham Rise off the Philippines' Pacific coast.
The President also taunted former soldiers turned lawmakers from Alejano's Magdalo party-list, accusing them of doing nothing for the country apart from mounting failed coups.
Alejano said Duterte's tirades cannot chip away the pride of Magdalo members in their achievements.
"Kahit maliitin po kami, kami po ay kumpiyansa sa aming mga sarili at aming mga dinaanan. Hindi naman ito utak-giyera palagi at patayan na katulad ng ating Presidente na sabi ay mga duwag daw kami at nag-surrender," he said.
(Even if we are belittled, we are confident of ourselves and what we went through. We could not have resorted to psychological warfare and killings like our President who dubbed us as cowards for surrendering during our uprising.)
The lawmaker said the party will continue to use legal avenues to voice their dissent against some of the Duterte administration's policies.
"Mas maganda nga pong nagpaparticipate kami, maingay po kami kaysa nag-iisip po kami ng ibang bagay. Tahimik po kami. Kaya nga po pumapasok kami sa mainstream politics -- so we can participate in the affairs of the government in the legal way," he said.
(It's better for us to participate and be outspoken, instead of being quiet and thinking about other solutions. This is why we entered mainstream politics -- so we can participate in the affairs of the government in the legal way.)
Source : ABS-CBN