Thursday, September 30, 2021

Don’t act like God, Dick! Duterte orders Cabinet, police, miltary to ignore Senate after big mouth Gordon reveals plan to probe DOH, Pharmally ’till kingdom come’

President Rodrigo Duterte is ordering the Cabinet, police and military to stop cooperating with the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s probe on allegedly overpriced pandemic suppliers bought by the Department of Health from Pharmally Pharmaceutical.

Duterte is blaming Senator Richard Gordon’s big mouth for what

Duterte did not like Gordon’s declaration that he would hold the DOH-Pharmally probe till “kingdom come” which he called “undemocratic” and would lead to a head-on collision between Malacanang and the Senate.

During a briefing, Duterte ran a video clip of Gordon firing off another lengthy soliloquy in Thursday’s hearing in which the Philippine Red Cross chairman said: “We go on with our hearing and this is the 10th hearing practically, and we will go on to kingdom come until we go because we are still practically in the beginning and we’re still on Pharmally and there’s a lot more to be dug.”

“You say that this can go on until kingdom come. Ibig sabihin at the end of the world. Iyon ‘yung panahon na magbaba na si Kristo para sabihin kung sino ‘yung magnanakaw pati liars. Sigurado ako ikaw ang ituro diyan sa Olongapo,” said Duterte.

“Dick alam mo, dalawa lang kayong nagsabi niyan ng ‘kingdom come’, si Hesukristo pati ikaw. So you are playing God…Ngayon, kailan ito matapos kingdom come? Who are you to say that? And you want the Filipino nation pati kami dito sa Executive department damayin mo?” he added.

Duterte said he has ordered Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to issue a memorandum for all members of the Executive Department to ignore the Blue Ribbon summons because of the “kingdom come” statement of its chairman Gordon.

““So ‘pag sinubpoena mo ‘yung taga-Executive department kasi ayaw ko na based on your statement that you will conduct the investigation until kingdom come, ako I will pull back the secretaries — si (Health Secretary Francisco) Duque and Secretary (Carlito) Galvez — mag-focus sila, redirect your attention to our problem of pandemic. Never mind Gordon, he is nothing,” he said.

“Kailan mo matapos? Sabihin, ‘Eh basta kingdom come’.You are overstepping your jurisdiction on this. There is an abuse of discretion already. This is not an acceptable statement in a democracy. We are run by laws and rules and you cannot do that for us for you to wait for kingdom come,” he added.

Aside from Cabinet members, Duterte said he would also order the Philippine National Police and Armed Froes of the Philippines not to help the Senate’s Sergeant-At-Arms in enforcing Gordon’s arrest and detention orders.

“You have gone out of bounds amounting to lack of jurisdiction. So sabihin ko sa sergeant-at-arms ngayon, do not ever attempt to arrest anybody kasi ikaw ang arestuhin ko. Ngayon, you will order the police and the military to help the sheriff. Ako naman as Commander-in-Chief of all uniformed personnel of government, I am ordering the police and the military and everybody to stay out of this trouble. Huwag kayong sumali, huwag kayong sumunod kasi may crisis na tayo,” Duterte said.