DAVAO CITY — Despite personal attacks by former president Rodrigo Duterte against him, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. clarified that he does not consider his predecessor as a political enemy.
“I don’t consider him a political enemy. It takes two to tango. I don’t consider him a political enemy,” President Marcos said.
The President made the remarks during a media interview on the sidelines of the Philippines-US-Japan trilateral meeting in Washington, DC.
President Marcos was asked to comment on Duterte’s statements saying they will become political enemies following the suspension of Davao del Norte Governor Edwin Jubahib.
Asked if he is willing to sit down with Duterte to discuss the supposed “gentleman’s agreement” with China, President Marcos replied in the affirmative.
“Send those documents to me. And then we’ll sit down and discuss it,” President Marcos said as he emphasized that he will surely review the documents so he can ask appropriate questions.
Marcos said the documents should be directly sent to him, not to the Department of Justice (DOJ) or the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) or any government agency.
“Pag-aaralan ko, mag-uusap kami kung gusto n’ya,” he said.
President Marcos believes there was indeed a “secret agreement” that was forged during the administration of Duterte with China as far as the issue in the West Philippine Sea is concerned. – PND
