Duterte: Sending soldiers on ‘suicide’ mission could lead to ouster

President Duterte visits soldiers fighting Islamic terrorists in the main battle area in Marawi City in this file photo. ARMY PHOTO

President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday night that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) could oust him if he were to send soldiers to fight China in the disputed areas of the West Philippine Sea.

He made the remark as China continued its military buildup in the disputed sea while critics slammed his government for its soft approach on the issue.

Duterte said sending government troops to fight China in the West Philippine Sea would “result in a massacre.”

“We cannot afford a war at this time because it will result in a massacre. I am not prepared to lose my soldiers and policeman for a simple adventurism,” Duterte said in a press briefing at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 2 shortly after his arrival from a three-day official trip in South Korea.

Besides, he said, there was no assurance the AFP would follow his orders if asked to risk the lives of troops over Manila’s maritime row with Beijing.

“If I do that, either I am inviting trouble within my country or the military and police will oust me. They are not prepared to go into suicide. They would rather dispense me rather than lose their soldiers unnecessarily and needlessly,” he said.

The President reiterated China’s threat that insisting our rights in the West Philippine Sea “might lead into some kind of trouble.”

“And when you say that word “trouble” in Chinese, it means exactly what it means. Are we prepared to go to war?” he said.

“Can I rely now in America and drop the first bomb when we attack? Can I rely on anybody’s help? If all of my soldiers will die there and all of the policemen to assist them, madisgraya ang Pilipinas sino ang managot? The people will execute me right at the Luneta,” he added.

The President said the AFP was not a fool to follow his order in case he orders them to fight with China over our sea dispute.

“Madali sabihin ‘yan. Kung ako ang military, ako ang general, utusan mo ako pumunta ka doon magpakamatay ang sundalo mo, sabihin mo, ‘F*ck you, why do I have to do that?’ Sino ang gagong susunod sa iyo? This is an armed forces of service not suicide. Remember that they have learned their lessons in several occasions in this country,” he said.

Diplomatic protest

The President also slammed “bright scholars,” whom he said were only grandstanding on the West Philippine Sea issue.

He said that it was “easy to postulate a theory” but it was not that easy to solve the country’s problems.

“Are you being realistic or you are just indulging in a public display of brilliance?” he said.

Filipino maritime experts have urged Duterte to take a stronger stand against China’s aggressive militarization in the West Philippine Sea, including filing a diplomatic protest.

“It is easy to say those things if you are not the one seated in power. If they want, they can seat for one month” he said, adding that he was willing to allow these experts to run the country even for a month if the Constitution would allow it.

The President also responded to criticisms about the country’s failure to file diplomatic protests over China’s activities in the West Philippne Sea.

“Diplomatic protest, every time we open our mouth we are protesting, actually,” he said.

Joint exploration

He also defended the government’s move to enter into a joint exploration with China in the disputed sea.

“Now, there is an offer for a joint exploration and others would say that it’s unconstitutional. By what standard? Can’t a country go into a business just because there is a pending issue of jurisdiction?” he said.

Duterte earlier said that a joint exploration between Manila and Beijing was a better option than an armed conflict. /cbb

READ: Joint exploration with China is co-ownership, says Duterte