Oath Taking of Newly Appointed AFP Officials

The President administered the oath taking of the newly appointed Armed Forces of the Philippines officials led by AFP Chief of Staff, General Eduardo Año, at the Rizal Hall in Malacañan Palace on 31 January 2017.

Speech During the Mass Oath Taking of the
Armed Forces of the Philippines Officials

Rizal Hall, Malacañan Palace

January 31, 2017

You know, as always, somebody prepares a speech for me, just to meet the contingencies of the moment.

Some are— Well, this time it’s short and maybe, alam ko, baka gusto na ninyong umuwi kaagad. Of course, there’s— May snacks tayo? I can invite you for a buffet but I cannot stay long also. Sumibat lang ako doon sa Climate Change. Nandiyan sila lahat.

But let me just read my speech this time. Baka makasalita pa ako ng— I may go out of control again and I do not want to be discourteous in front of you.

To all the officials, uniformed men and women, and civilian personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon to you all.

This afternoon’s oath taking ceremony certainly highlights one of the cherished tradition for every public servant and most especially, our men and women in uniform who have sworn to be the defenders of the state and its democratic institutions.

As your commander-in-chief, I share with you the honor and pride of hurdling the challenges and trials that each of you went through this far.

Of course, you will not have reached the milestone that you have been bestowed now, if not for the encouragement, understanding, sacrifice and prayers of your loved ones.

They are your source of strength and inspiration for all of you to carry on with your work and inspire the rest of the force. To them, the respective families, my congratulations, too.

Ladies and gentlemen, as we aspire to foster inclusive growth across all sectors of our society, through the convergence of security, developmental and governance strategies, may I reiterate some of the reminders to each of you.

During our previous conferences, I have laid down my marching orders, most especially, in addressing some of the urgent matters concerning peace and security.

I therefore enjoin everyone to give their best and to be relevant in whatever capacity you now hold.

Ours is a complex and dynamic security environment. You and I know that it will never be easy. Hence, I expect nothing less than your unequivocal commitment, competence, and professionalism.

As we endeavor to carry out reforms in all government agencies, I wish that you remain to be the kind of officers who put the welfare of the organization, the nation, and its people above your personal considerations.

Bear in mind that your careers grow along with your responsibilities. After all, those who— hard-earned stars on your shoulders, it is rightful then that you polish them, keep them shining and brightly untainted.

And lastly, as you pledge your allegiance to the flag of the Republic of the Philippines, may all of you remain faithful to the sacred— guard it with your lives, the welfare of the nation.

You owe it to your country and to the people. Draw inspiration from the valor of your ancestors who demonstrated their staunch loyalty to the flag and to the Constitution.

Once again, congratulation and to your respective stars, bear the new rank with new pride as you continue to serve the Republic of the Philippines, the Filipino people.

You know, I would like just to add an ad-lib.

We are facing a new threat. When I was newly inaugurated President, I made it my obligation to tour the entire country, visiting camps, military, police, and otherwise.

I was not cultivating or propagating any loyalty for me, to be there just to show my presence, kasi I do not need it. But the country needs it badly. Your loyalty to the flag and to the country is paramount to— above loyalty to any particular personality or person in government.

But in those tours, I mentioned it to you that aside from the danger of drugs which we never realized to be that widespread and that the dimension was just too staggering.

And I was really appalled to learn nung Presidente na ako because then, I had the access to all information; from you guys, from the police; from all, NBI. And even in the validation, I had to take in the DILG, just to make sure that I was on the right track, that nobody would have been— You know, it’s always, when your name is published there, in connection with drugs. Whether you are a politician or you’re a policeman, or army man. You’re destroyed forever.

So it took that long for me really and I said the numbers are just too great. To the extent that I decided to furnish everybody, the Speaker of the House, and the Senate. Sinabi ko sa kanila na, “Mabigat ito. Hindi ko kaya.”

I don’t know, sabi ko, what are your plans are. But even if you declare martial law a thousand times, because little did we know that five, four, three, two, one, six years ago; we were already a narco-politics.

And that most of the ground level, ang mga barangay captain, 40 percent of the entire country, nasa droga na. And I decided that if you hold the elections sa barangay as scheduled, talo ang Pilipino. Because ang magpatakbo, pera na ng narco-politics eh.

Sabi ko nga sa inyo, kayong mga—who have reached the apex of your career: How long, how hard was it for you to reach what you are now? Maski just to earn a good income to build a modest house.

Ilang taon niyo pinaghirapan? How many battles did you go through, placed yourself on the line and come up still alive to reach the retiring age?

Ilan lang sa inyo nagkakaroon ng pera para for the savings of—? Even anticipating retirement days will not really be enough.

Kita mo ito? Hindi ako, hindi ko kayo pinapainggit. Galit ako sa kanila. Tingnan mo itong mga mayors. Kita mo itong mga barangay captains, they go into drugs; overnight, they become millionaire. Then, they create so many slaves, four million plus, we would never know how many, who are really slaves in the true sense of the word.

Mas mabuti pa nga ‘yung slaves sa slave markets ng Africa or the Middle East, pag nabili sila, mapatrabaho mo pa. Itong mga Pilipino, pag tinamaan ‘to at gumanun na talaga because the use of shabu will result inevitably in the shrinkage of the brain.

Kaya may kakilala kayo ng pamangkin ninyo, kausapin mo, wala na. Mag-usap kayo, start with a topic, then suddenly, they go out of range. Wala nang— and so anuhin natin ito sila? Mga anak ng kapwa natin Pilipino eh. Kaya galit talaga ako. Susmaryosep, hindi lang niyo alam.

Talagang, kaya ako, I spew out the words lang. Talagang gagawiin ko sa iyo, ibabalik ko talaga sa kanila ‘yang ginawa nila sa Pilipino.

When I was mayor, eh lahat kayo, halos dumaan ng Mindanao eh. I was a bit strict but in Davao I thought that that was it, meron dito, mga intermittent entry.

Hindi ko alam na doon sa Davao, kasi takot nga silang mamatay. Hindi ko alam sa ibang Pilipinas, grabe na pala. So it included municipal mayors. It included—

So ganito na lang, pati ako, sasali ako. I do not need any security. I will go back to the Alunan doctrine. They are only allowed one or two security.

Mga mayors pati governors, kung takot kayong mamatay, eh ‘di mag-resign kayo eh. Pero kung sabi ninyo na, you go around with an entourage of dalawa, tatlong convoy, tapos, may armas.

Lalo na sa Mindanao, I do not want to offend but that is true. Pagka— When you travel with 10 cars, you have 10 cars, puro armado, halos lahat ‘yan, may droga ka and that has been proven time and again.

Now, beginning tomorrow, the ES, I don’t know if he’d be able to draft the— I will prohibit, ‘bah kung sabi nila, isali ang Presidente, o ‘di okay lang. I traveled commercial, I do not need any— Basta may tao lang, mag-tingin sa akin sa likod, one in front, tapos na.

I will not allow excessive, kasi diyan nag-umpisa eh. Kita mo yan noon. Sino ba namang pulis pati— Maglakad ‘yung mayors when they—pagpasok nila, they want their presence felt. Tapos maraming security, talo pa ang Presidente.

And all the while, akala natin, ayaw na natin ng ganun, hulihin rin ninyo, hulihin rin ‘yung pulis, tatawag naman dito sa Malacañan, “Mr. President, tutal, nakakasira ito sa ating partido dito sa pulitika.” They cannot do that to me.

In the first place, hindi naman ako humingi ng tulong sa kanila. A few politicians far and wide in between the years and even during the campaign, were only about four governors. In the hometown of my father, wala nga ako maski isang barangay captain. Of course, I won.

Nasanay kasi ito sila sa ano, well, of course, being a public official, he’s entitled really to— Pero beginning, I don’t know kailan ipalabas ni Executive Secretary, we’ll go back to the Alunan doctrine.

Pagka may convoy diyan, tapos marami, “para”, then inspection. There is a declaration of lawless violence. I had to do it to justify your extra duties as policemen.

Spread thin ako at saka there are about, for your information, about 6,000 policemen who are into drugs. And, of course, with the sordid event about the Koreans, I ordered the police to stop all operations.

No policemen in this country anywhere is allowed to enforce laws related to the drug campaign. Kasi magamit nila ‘yang— palitan nila ‘yang warrant, palitan lang ang pangalan tapos pupunta—

I had to explain again and again. I had to apologize almost to every Korean who would come here, to the Ambassador and to the American people.

I think Panelo is going there, I told him to make a good apology. Wala tayong magawa, nangyari eh. Ang pinakabastos sa lahat, ang masakit daw sa kanila is talagang ‘yung flushing sa— down the drain sa toilet bowl. Nasaktan sila, maski naman gawain sa atin ‘yan.

Kaya let me reorganize the enforcement diyan sa drugs sa police. In the meantime, they would be arrested and I will order you to arrest them.

Kung hindi ko kayo ipasok sa laro, patay ako. Walang magtingin diyan sa abusadong pulis eh. The culture of corruption sa pulis, matindi. In the beginning, pati mga generals eh.

So that’s why, if you are asking, “Bakit naman ganito kalawak?” I said, long time ago, we were already a narco-politics, including the police.

Now, I gave you the book ‘Cartel,’ about anong nangyari sa South America. If you have read it, then I would understand na nakuha ninyo ang dimension.

Now, the second danger natin is, itong ISIS. Again, I do not pretend to be all-knowing. But you’ve noticed that in the camps all over, nagle-lecture ako about the looming danger of ISIS. And because of the extremism perpetrated by the Abu Sayyaf on the south, sabi ko, there will be a time that they would visit the island of Mindanao.

Nandiyan na ‘yung Maute and from what we can gather is that, itong si Hapilon (Hapsilon) was chosen to lead.

Nagbibidahan ‘yan sila lahat pati sa Indonesia, who would be chosen, parang chapter president ng ISIS. And Hapilon (Hapsilon) from the Jolo area have entered Mindanao.

There is a fight at least going on, limited sa Mindanao. We have to contain the fighting in Mindanao. We cannot just uphold, to allow them to spread because ang pinaka-delikado diyan, ‘yung mga scholars.

Now, I’ve heard not only from the— your report, but from mga pulitiko, that there are about 4 to 6 Arabs, Arabs talaga lecturing. Iyon ang pinaka-delikado, just like the communists, ‘yung mga political officer nila ang delikado para sa atin.

So sabi ko nga kay Delfin, kay Lorenzana, sa lahat, we have to contain the fighting. We cannot afford to allow it to spread. Maraming madadamay. Else, I’ll be forced to arm everybody.

Kagaya ng Alsa Masa, kung sino ‘yung mga kalaban ng— ayaw ng komunista, but in the end, it also proved disaster because pagkatapos ng Alsa Masa, wala na ‘yung komunista; every Tom, Dick and Harry, who was given a firearm to fight the communist, were using it against civilians, depredations, holdup, lahat na. So that we have to—

But I cannot allow, they are not only killing, it has nothing to do with Moro and Christians. They are just killing everybody. They are kidnapping Indonesians. Na may bagong report na naman, so, a special emissary was sent by the Central Government of Jakarta who flew in last night. And urgent: Ano ang ginagawa natin?

So, I just reminded him that we will just— You know, we have this agreement. We have this understanding. Put it into practice and allow more ships. Kung magkulang kami, eh ‘di—

And by the way, I also asked China. If they can patrol the international waters without necessarily intruding into the territorial waters of countries, we would be glad if we have their presence there.

Hindi naman kailangan grey ships eh. Sabi ko, maski ‘yung coast guard cutter just to patrol like what they did in Somalia. Tumulong sila. Somalia has toned down.

But dito sa Malacca Strait pati dito sa Sulu Sea, it remains to be a big problem. And kung masara ‘yan diyan, either they go up to the North, and if they’re headed for Mexico, down south, or dito ka magdaan sa mas malapit, which would mean higher costs, higher rate, higher insurance, it adds up to the goods and the services that governs the world, it’s always goods and services.

So iyan ang—your mission, nandiyan pa kayo. Ang malas natin, tayo ang inabutan. Ako, akala ko, good sailing ako; ngayon pala, lumabas, lahat by the hundreds of the thousands.

I was scared. I don’t know if you were scared, I was scared.

Hundreds of thousands, diyan sa TV. Puro payat, puro malnourished. Anong ginawa nila sa Pilipino? Now, you’ll understand my hatred. Talagang galit ako. Talagang galit ako.

Iyong mga international human— You don’t mean anything to me, youshut up. I have a problem to solve and it is my country’s problem. Do not mess up with me.

Eh parang laking awa, buti’t na lang, itong bagong Presidente, “Mr. President-elect, may I congratulate you of your victory. This is President Duterte of the Philippines.”

“Oh yes, I’ve heard that you have the bad fix with these State Department people, these God! lousy guys there. It’s about—(expletive), they are (expletive) and— Me and my country, in that border of— Also the guys there in government is helping each other flooding my country. You are doing the right thing.”

Hindi ko malaman ngayon if I will obey Obama or I will obey the Trump— So iba-iba kasi ang estilo talaga ng mundo eh. So ngayon, wala na ‘yung mga human rights dito, tahimik sila. Sabi ni Trump, “You’re doing it right.”

Kung tanungin mo ako, if I’m doing it right, then do not ask me any question, it’s already right.

Well, that is the damage of the world. But may I congratulate you again. And we have always placed our trust in you. I’ve been mayor for— one of the cities, they pointed out was better developed.

You know, I’ve hit nine percent sa growth, nine percent is the highest so far sa history. But seven lang ‘yan eh. I hit nine because Davao is— And I could not have done it really without the help of the military and the police. Hindi ko kaya ‘yung ganun.

Sinong bang magtrabaho ‘yang—? The military and the police. Ayaw ko na lang magyabang kung ano. Basta, ako sa inyo ako, huwag kayong maniwala na komunista ako. Iyong mga babae lang yan na magaganda ang hinahabol ko diyan. Hindi naman ‘yung—(laughter) Hindi, biro lang.

So I cannot stay with you because I still— kami o, we have to go back to the Climate Change Conference. I just told them na— Tinakot ko si Legarda na, I have to go kasi ‘yung mga sundalo, nagco-cock na ng baril. By the time na maglabas tayo dito, arestado na tayong lahat.(laughter)

So, I, I’m proud of my soldiers. I’m really proud of you.

Mabuhay ang Armed Forces of the Philippines. ●