President Duterte talked about his “jet ski” promise he made in 2016.
In his Talk to the People briefing on Monday night, President Rodrigo Duterte talked about his “jet ski” promise he made in 2016.
According to him, he never intended to ride a jet ski to Spratlys island and to plant a Philippine flag to assert the country’s ownership.
President Duterte’s critics had been recalling his pronouncements in a presidential debate after he called the 2016 arbitral award which favored the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) over China’s historical claims “a scrap of paper“.
President Duterte said that his bravado was a pure campaign joke and if people on the other side believed it, he would say that they’re really stupid. The President also emphasized that he will die if he sailed to Pag-asa Island, which was around 150 nautical miles from Palawan, using only a jet ski.
“I wasn’t taking lightly the sovereignty but just to emphasize talaga hinaluan ko lang ng biro. If you swallow it… Hindi na lang ako magcomment. Alam ba ninyo na ‘di ako marunong maglangoy? Eh kung matumba yang yawa na yan, magkapa-kapa na ako. By that time, I would be the late Rodrigo Duterte. Kung totohanin mo iyon,” President Duterte said.
READ ALSO: Palace Dares Carpio To File Legal Case vs President Duterte Over “Scrap Of Paper” Remark
At one point, President Duterte said that he bought spare parts in order to improve the condition of his “second hand” jet ski as he considered going to the disputed waters. The parts, according to him, weren’t delivered.
President Duterte also said that he feared for his life before pursuing his 2016 “jet ski” campaign promise.
Earlier, Retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio asked President Duterte to retract his statement about calling the arbitral ruling as a piece of paper meant to be thrown in a wastebasket.
Carpio said that President Duterte’s pronouncements as the head of state could be dangerous to the Philippines’ interests in the territorial waters.
He also lamented the President’s claim that China was in possession of the West Philippine Sea, which was the Philippines’ territorial claims at the South China Sea.
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