Foreigners may visit the country free from harassment of the police, Immigration, and other authorities but must “better behave,” President Duterte said last Tuesday.
The President has discouraged foreign visitors from criticizing his government, saying he would accept attacks or insults only from Filipinos.
“If you are a citizen of another country and a tourist here, you better behave. You know, I can take any criticism, however bad it is, however discourteous o kabastos, as long as it comes from a Filipino, I will accept it,” he said during an entrepreneurship summit in Clark, Pampanga.
“Turista ka dito then you come here under the cloak of what religion and start to blabber your mouth and attack us. ‘Mga g*** kayong mga…’ Who gave you that right to do it in my country? I’m not doing it to you. We are not doing it because we are afraid of going to prison,” he added.
Duterte said only Filipinos have the right to criticize his government since they pay his salary. “If you begin to attack me because I am not credible or I am incompetent or I have fallen short of my promise to you, then by all means do it,” he added. (Genalyn D. Kabiling)
