IF you really want to be help, act as if you are part of the opposition.
This was the instruction of President Duterte to his long-time aide and now Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go during his public address on Monday evening. He met earlier with selected Cabinet members at the Palace.
“Bong, if you really want to help me, you act as if you are with the opposition. Don’t just say we are friends,” Duterte said.
He urged his long-time friend and supporter to raise any issue or criticism that his administration needs to respond to.
“If you think it will embarrass me, give it to another lawmaker. Whisper the situation to them and they will open up everything for us,” Duterte said, in a mix of English and Filipino.
The President said he is ready to accept criticism especially if it will involve officials, who are involved in corruption.
“So long as there is corruption [in the government], it will really ruin us if we tolerate it,” Duterte said.
Aside from Go, almost all those who usually accompany Duterte during his regular weekly evening public address are members of the Cabinet or are source persons.
Go’s presence in the event has raised eyebrows in some quarters, as he is expected to show more independence from the Executive department now that that he is a senator.
Nevertheless, Duterte said he still welcomes the attendance of Go to his public address, which he sees, as part of the oversight function of lawmakers on the executive department. “I must admire you for your industry,” the President told Go on national television.