PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday the communist rebels seeking a peace agreement with the government would never demand his ouster and would even die for him to protect him from the “Yellow” forces wanting the presidency.
“In every demonstration, it’s the Yellow[s] who are always shouting for my ouster. You will never hear it from the Communists because I am the President belonging to the Left,” Duterte told businessmen in Malacañang.
“The Reds would never demand my ouster. They will die for me, believe me. That’s the reason why I was able to convince them for a [peace] talk.”
He said the members of the Yellow forces were the only ones calling for his ouster because the Left would never demand that he step down.
“Everybody would tell you that I was crossing the ideological borders even before I became mayor. Find a policemen or soldiers who was, who was taken hostage there. And they would tell you the person who would go there to the mountains to retrieve them,” Duterte said.
He said the recent demonstrations were only against the burial of the late President Ferdinand Marcos at the heroes’ cemetery.
“Do not believe that sh*t that they will never go for that ouster,” Duterte said.
“Look at their posters. They would just condemn the burial of Marcos, but that is just their favorite line because Marcos was their enemy. But for those who cannot forget, you are condemned to enjoy your grief until you die.”
Last week, Duterte slammed the Yellow supporters who joined the recent protest actions against the burial of the late dictator at the heroes’ cemetery, which led to the resignation of Vice President Leni Robredo.
Duterte, who is known to have befriended the National People’s Army, rescued captured law enforcers from the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines before and after he became President.
Duterte earlier stressed that the negotiations with the communists might be terminated following disagreements over the rebels’ demand to free individuals whom they claimed to be political prisoners.