Apologising for the outburst he called a “stray bullet”, Duterte says it resulted from his frustration with the shambolic organisation by the government and hopes to apologise to the Holy Father in person.
Advertisement
He said that the camp already has a shortlist, however, must undergo the vetting system and can not be announced until Duterte is officially declared as president.
Investors in the Philippines have no need to fear.
He has also expressed openness to bilateral discussions with China on the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) dispute, though he later said he would welcome multilateral talks on the sea row involving non-claimants such as the US, Australia, and Japan.
“When we get there, that’s a very important ceremony for the State, that there is that transition in power”.
The government will address bottlenecks in public-private partnership projects and set spending on infrastructure at 5 per cent of the gross domestic product, he said.
Duterte, 71, the longtime mayor of Davao, surged to a landslide election win on Monday following an incendiary campaign in which he gleefully used foul language to disrespect authority figures.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Beijing hopes that Duterte will be able to strengthen ties with Manila.
What is predicted to be a presidency full of strong exchanges may turn out not to be the case.
Mr Duterte has also gained worldwide notoriety for his crude jokes about rape and insults of Pope Francis – virtually unheard-of for an official in this predominantly Roman Catholic country.
“The mayor has reiterated on several occasions that he wants to visit the Vatican, whether he lost or won, not only to pay his respects to the pope, but also to give an explanation and ask his forgiveness”, Lavina told reporters.
Nearly 90 percent of the Philippines’ population is Roman Catholic, but Duterte says that while he was raised in the faith, he no longer practices it. He has often spoken strongly in favor of birth control and contraception, which puts him at odds with the official Vatican line.
Mr Duterte is due to be sworn into office on June 30 for a term of six years.
In a separate interview, Pia said Duterte wanted a “gender-balanced” leadership and would try to close the gap in the ratio of Filipino women in the labor force.
“This is not in response to criticism that the Mayor is anti-women”.
While Duterte has been criticized for allowing a spree of vigilante killings in Davao city, where he has served as mayor for more than two decades, the United States has made clear this week that it plans to work with him.
Advertisement
He has previously been in trouble for “joking” about an Australian missionary that was raped and murdered in his city.
