In fact, Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said on Tuesday that the President has expressed the same concern of several groups and individuals who were alarmed by the extrajudicial killings spawned by the government’s bloody war against illegal drugs.
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Elizabeth Trudeau, spokesperson of the US Department of State, said the US would continue to call on Philippine officials “to emphasize the importance of this fundamental democratic principle”. The president recently referred to the USA ambassador as gay and accused him of meddling in the Philippine elections.
Over 600,000 drug users and pushers have already surrendered to the authorities. “We believe in due process. We abhor its ability to even destroy public institutions, thus our proactive investigation of any report that judges and court personnel abet the drug trade”, she said.
The Philippines’ Supreme Court has ordered an investigation into four judges whom President Rodrigo Duterte claimed were involved in the drug trade.
“We’ve seen those inappropriate comments made about (U.S.) Ambassador (Philip) Goldberg. He’s a multi-time ambassador, one of our most senior USA diplomats”, she said.
In a speech before army troops on Friday in the central Philippines, Duterte narrated a lunch meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at the presidential palace in Manila last month.
Duterte, known for his foul mouthed manner, belittled the U.S. $32-million fund donation announced by Kerry and has called ambassador Goldberg “bakla” or “gay ambassador” and “son of a bitch” during the recent meeting with soldiers in Davao City.
“I had a feud with his ambassador, his gay ambassador”. He meddled in the elections, giving statements here and there.
He said the court has chose to treat Duterte’s allegations “as a complaint against the four judges”. Goldberg expressed support to the statement of his Australian counterpart.
She asked the Executive to furnish the court with the source and basis of allegations against the seven judges Duterte named at dawn Sunday.
Stay on topic – This helps keep the thread focused on the discussion at hand. The Court looks with alarm at the proliferation of drugs, in a consensus shared with you, Mr. President, that unsafe drugs have been destroying Filipino lives and families.
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