There will be no apologies from President Rodrigo Duterte over his “made-up” story touching a maid, the Palace said Thursday, insisting such remark was only “concocted” to dramatize and call out the hypocrisy in the Catholic Church.
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo reiterated that Duterte’s confession to a priest when he was a teenager was made up to point out the hypocrisy of Church leaders.
“We said that was a made-up story, which is his way of criticizing the hypocrisy of some members of the clergies (sic), specifically the priest who sexually abused him when he was still a student as well as his fellow students at that time,” Panelo told a Palace press briefing.
“The President uses any method that will dramatize, call attention, and bring the messages he wants to impart to those concerned,” he added.
On Sunday, Duterte drew outrage after he detailed how he touched his maid while she was sleeping.
The Palace had previously downplayed Duterte’s tale as a laughable anecdote, something that was purposely spliced to characterize the behavior of the priest who insisted on hearing more sins during their confessions when there were none.
In related developments:
• Lingayen Archbishop Socrates Villegas, apparently in response to an earlier presidential statement, said those who disrespected and called God “stupid” were anti-Christ.
In an open letter posted on his Facebook last Dec. 31, Villegas said people should never disrespect the name of God, reminding them not to imitate those individuals who scorn God.
“Do not force the infinite God to fit into our limited minds. They who call God stupid are anti-Christ,” Villegas said.
“Pray for these people but do not imitate them. Respect them as elders but do not follow their bad example,” he added.
Villegas also reminded the faithful not to listen to people who tell them it was useless to go to church and attend the Holy Mass.
“Whoever teaches you that is anti-Christ and there are many of them, including those who look at it as a joke. They are not for Christ. They are against Christ,” Villegas said.
Duterte earlier urged Catholics to stop going to Church and to just express their faith by setting up chapels inside their residences.
The Chief Executive has been condemning religion and the Catholic Church, to the extent of calling it as “the most hypocritical institution in the Philippines.”
In Malacañang, Panelo was asked if Duterte’s confession of misbehavior when he was a minor would encourage violence against women, especially to Filipina household workers. He said: “I don’t think so.”
Panelo said the remark was dramatized in such a way that audience would laugh, stressing that the message that Duterte wanted to convey was not lost on the listeners.
“It will not [encourage] because foreign governments know the position of the President with those kinds of issues,” he added.
He also dismissed the concern that the President’s sensitive remarks would affect the minors. The Palace official even said the President did not violate the Code of Ethics for government officials.
According to Panelo, the Duterte’s unconventional manner of creating controversial remarks in addressing issues to the public had been “very effective.”
“If you noticed the President has been doing that even during the campaign. And that has been very effective on the listeners. That’s why I think he will not stop in doing this because he feels the people understand him more,” he said.
“You know, I think the problem is the ultra-conservative people. Those who look for the flaws of the President [even if] they know exactly the message of the President,” he added,
Asked if the President would apologize for his “concoctive story (to) dramatize the hypocrisy of a particular man in a cloak,” Panelo said: “Definitely not.”
“You know the President, he couldn’t care less whether there would be an erosion in public support or not,” he said.
“He shows that he is not a President who hides behind the mask. He’s a bold person who does not hide anything. He tells what he feels and what he wants, and he does what he said he would do during the campaign. He’s that type of person,” he added.
Duterte is known for drawing widespread criticism for his controversial statements in his speeches.