WHEN Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced his impending resignation last week due to health reasons, some anti-Duterte individuals kept asking, what about President Rodrigo Duterte? Will he do the same? Abe, the longest serving Japanese prime minister, announced over the weekend that he was resigning because of ill health, saying he can no longer effectively serve Japan with his health condition.
PM Abe, 65, justified his resignation by saying, “I don’t want to make a mistake in important political decisions while undergoing treatment. I decided I should not continue sitting in this seat as long as I cannot respond to the mandate of the people with confidence.”
So, what about Duterte, his critics asked. Are these people expecting Duterte, who is rumored to have a serious illness, to also resign? The President was even suspected to have secretly left for Singapore for medical consultation.
Well, I’m sorry for those who demanded for the resignation of the President due to health reason because the Chief Executive is healthy and strong. “Mas malakas pa sa kalabaw ang Presidente,” Sen. Bong Go, who is also a close confidant of the President, was quoted as saying.
Just recently, Duterte announced that his doctors advised him to stop drinking liquor because it damaged his esophagus, which may lead to cancer. But this was denied by Malacañang spokesperson Harry Roque, saying this has been the case even before Duterte was elected President.
Section 12, Article 7 of the 1987 Constitution states: “In the case of serious illness of the President, the public shall be informed of the status of his health. The member of the Cabinet in charge of the national security and foreign relations and the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines shall not be denied access to the President during such illness.”
If Duterte is seriously ill, why should he hide it from the public? In several speeches, Duterte had mentioned about resigning out of frustration and disappointment. Had his Vice President not been Leni Robredo, who came from the opposition, he could have resigned long time ago. Had Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos won, I think Duterte probably already turned over his seat to the latter.
Besides, we cannot compare Japan to the Philippines. First, on culture and tradition. If a public official in that country is involved in corruption issues and scandal, resignation and even “hara-kiri” (suicide) is an honorable exit for them. Did you hear any Filipino politician doing that here? None.
Second, we have a different political system here. Japan is adopting a parliamentary form of government. Their Prime Minister is not directly elected by the people. He is elected by his partymates in the parliament. So, he has no direct covenant with the people. But, here, we are adopting the presidential/bicameral legislative form of government and our President is directly elected by the people. He has a direct mandate from the people. So, it won’t be easy for him to resign because of his covenant with the people.
So, to all Duterte critics and the opposition, sorry that your expectation will not happen. Why won’t you wait for the next presidential elections? It’s just a matter of two more years. Huwat lang sa mo.