DAVAO CITY—President Duterte said he would like to see a stronger and more capable police and military forces serving the country when his Palace term expires in 2022.
To translate this to reality, the President said he will priotize the acquisition of modern police and military hardware and equipment, alongside his program for a massive infrastructure buildup embodied under his administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program.
“They [police and military] will have the priority in the purchases. Well, of course, we want to have the infrastructure, but what would it do good to us if we are a weak nation? We will be treated as a pushover,” he said in his speech during the opening of the newest shooting range of Armscor in Barangay Catitipan, some 12 kilometers north of downtown.
Duterte, likewise, dispelled notions that he intends to “perpetuate” himself to the presidency.
He said his focus in strengthening the country’s military and police forces was meant “to avert any future threats and challenges to national security,” and that he may even tap reserve forces and those who underwent or graduated the basic Reserve Officers’ Training Corps in home defense.