It seems President Duterte won’t revive a media boycott despite alleged erroneous reports he supposedly insulted a major western ally of the country.
Duterte said he has no ill-feelings toward the media and even challenged them to criticize him if he is bad at his job.
He made the remarks even after casting blame on news reports on his strong comments that triggered a conflict with the United States.
“I am not at liberty to be angry at anybody. It is your sworn duty to ask questions. Wala akong ga-lit sa inyo,” the President said in a press conference after his arrival from his visits to Laos and Indonesia early yesterday morning.
“You know people commit mistakes. Some with malice, some without malice. It is just a mere shortfall of talent but do not hesitate to attack me criticize me if I do wrong in my job. It is your duty to your country,” he added.
The President earlier grabbed global attention after his profanity-laced warning against the United States interference on human rights issues in the country.
Before leaving for the regional summit in Laos, Duterte unleashed a scathing attack on US President Barack Obama for attempting to meddle with local affairs and uttered a Filipino cuss word in anger. Duterte was later quoted in international news that his Filipino expletive was directed at the US leader.
Duterte later expressed regret over his strong remarks which came across as a personal attack on Obama. He partly blamed the media for its wrong translation of his Filipino cuss word that led to the confusion.
The President, in the press conference in Davao City, explained anew that his expletives were not directed at anyone. “I never attributed my statement to anybody. I was complaining about the situation but I never directed any statement that was insulting,” he said. (Genalyn D. Kabiling)
