MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte declared on Tuesday that he would never order Health Secretary Francisco Duque III to quit, despite requests for him to do so due to the Department of Health’s (DOH) alleged deficiencies in handling pandemic funds.
Duterte claimed in a pre-recorded Talk to the People that he had no plans to listen to the public’s demands for Duque’s “outright” dismissal.
“Maski kaming dalawa na lang ni Duque sa (If I and Duque will be left alone in) the rest of the Philippines, I will stand by him. ‘Pag masira ako, wala (I don’t care if I will lose the public’s trust). But I will never abandon the person just like that,” Duterte said.
Duterte reiterated that there is no need to terminate Duque.
“Gusto nila, si Duque, fire him, dismiss him. For what? Noon pa iyan, ilang buwan na iyan, gusto nila alisin si Duque. Sabi ko nga, wala naman akong nakita (It’s been months since they have been calling for Duque’s resignation. I don’t see any reason [for his dismissal]),” he said. “You have to observe fairness. Ako, fair lang talaga ako (I am just being fair).”
Duterte stated that Duque has been “painted black” as a result of the Commission of Audit’s (COA) findings on the Department of Health’s (DOH) utilization of funds authorized for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic response operations in 2020.
While he does not blame COA, Duterte expressed disappointment that the audit report has already damaged Duque’s reputation.
“The damage has already been done. Kasi nga, paglabas ng COA report, flagged, flagged, flagged (COA released a report that flagged [DOH]. Ang perception talaga ng tao (the public’s perception), the popular notion is that you are flagged because there’s corruption,” he said.
Duterte stated that he does not mind incurring criticism for his decision to retain Duque as Health Secretary.
“Kaya may nagsasabi na makakasira daw sa akin iyang si Duque (Some are saying Duque would ruin my reputation). Then, so be it,” he said. “Hindi ko kaya ‘yung kinuha ko si Duque, nilagay ko diyan tapos ngayon, ‘yung COA, iba-iba ang findings, napinturahan siya ng itim, ako ang kumuha tapos (I could not stomach the fact that I appointed him and after the COA released its findings that painted him black) I will just fire him.”
Duterte stated that he would only release Duque if he resigns “voluntarily”.
“Kung si (If) Duque will offer to resign voluntarily, tatanggapin ko (I will accept that). Pero kung sabihin mo ako ang magsabing sa kaniyang mag-resign ka (But if you would tell me that I should tell him to resign), that will never happen,” he said.
After the COA raised concerns about the DOH’s handling of the PHP67.32 billion in Covid-19 response funds, critics resumed their calls for his resignation.
The COA then indicated that the detected deficiencies in pandemic fund management are not equivalent to any acts of corruption.
Duque claimed on Aug. 19 that after multiple attempts to resign, Duterte had requested him to stay.
