President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte has expanded the scope of his proclamation earlier declaring a “state of lawlessness” to an indefinite “state of national emergency on account of lawless violence” nationwide based on the latest document released by Malacanang Palace.
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“Actually, that’s far from martial law, although it can graduate to that especially if lawless violence comes to a point there is suspension of habeas corpus”.
He said the proclamation commands the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippines National Police (PNP) to undertake measures permitted by the constitution and laws.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday that the United States has no moral authority to give him a lecture on humans rights, warning he will not allow any country to interfere in Philippine internal affairs.
The blast, which tore through a bustling market in the heart of Davao city on Friday, killed at least 14 people and led to the president imposing a “state of lawlessness” in the country. “I have this duty to protect this country”.
“The Department of Defense and the (Department of Interior and Local Government) shall coordinate immediately with the additional forces of the AFP and PNP to suppress lawless violence and acts of terror in Mindanao”, Medialdea said.
Duterte had been mayor of Davao for most of the past two decades, before winning national elections in a landslide this year and being sworn in as president on June 30.
Asked on Thursday about death threats, his spokesman, Ernesto Abella said: “He eats that for breakfast, it’s not something new”.
Duterte was in Davao on Friday, but was safe and at a police station after the explosion, his son Paolo Duterte, who is vice mayor of the city, told Reuters. He typically spends his weekends in Davao.
Mr Duterte has made eradicating illegal drugs the top priority of the beginning of his presidency.
Police are searching for the three – and possibly a fourth person – over the bombing, which has been widely blamed on the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group. At an Asian summit in the Laotian capital of Vientiane, Duterte said in jest that most of the leaders he would meet, including President Barack Obama and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, have had a taste of terrorist attacks.
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The group aims to establish an independent Islamic state on the southern island of Mindanao, where Davao City is located.
