(Eagle News) – President Rodrigo Duterte said he would not allow other government housing units to be illegally occupied, giving a stern warning to members of the Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap not to make a repeat of what they did in the housing units in Pandi, Bulacan.
The President said he would make sure government housing units he would build for the police and the military would be well-guarded by M16s and even “bazookas.”
“Hanggang diyan lang ‘yan sa Bulacan. Anarchy. Pero hindi na sila makaulit kasi next time that I will build the houses for the police and the [military]… Pabantayan ko na ng limang M16 pati bazooka. ‘Pag unang entrada pa lang, bitawan mo na. ‘T—inang ‘yan. Eh nagpapasensya lang ako, kasi mahirap lang rin ‘yan eh,” the President told reporters who asked him for clarification in Camp General Artemio Ricarte in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
This was in response to questions on what he would do after KADAMAY members claimed that they would occupy more government housing units after his pronouncement that they would no longer be evicted in Pandi.
The President stressed that what KADAMAY did was not right as they occupied housing units which were not theirs.
The term he used was “inagaw,” Tagalog word for “grabbed.”
“Iyong pabahay ninyo inagaw kasi ng mga pobre rin kagaya natin. But those are the guys na ginagamit ng Left, and they are into such anarchical activities at hindi ko naman mapilit na paalisin doon kasi iyong ibang awardees, pulis pati military. Ang problema, nandoon na iyong iba,” he said during his speech before the soldiers assigned in the Western Command.
“Kaya sabi ko, ‘If this thing will continue tapos hintuin ng mga sundalo at pulis, baka may mapatay pa diyan,’” he said.
“Kaya nakikiusap ako sa inyo as President na ibigay na lang natin doon sa KADAMAY but do not worry because I will build you a better one,” he explained.
Duterte later told reporters that he was trying to prevent violence, and possibly even bloodshed. He knew that the KADAMAY members were being used by the Left, or the communists as he mentioned in his speech.
“Sinabi ko ito ibigay ko. Huwag na ninyong ulitin. Nandiyan na eh. Para ‘yan sa mga sundalo. Eh ‘pag mga pulis, pagdating nila ‘yung unit nila, ayaw mong, ayaw kong lumabas diyan. Eh kung pagbabarilin ka. Squatter ka eh,” he said.
“Sabi ko sa mga sundalo huwag na lang kasi masama pakinggan, na tayo, kayo may armas tapos ‘yun mga mahirap lang. Ibigay na lang natin sa kanila,” he said.
“Kung i-evict mo yan, what do you suppose that I will do? I will have to use force. Between anarchy and magbigay ka na lang.. eh dyan lang yan sa Bulacan,” he said.
President Duterte repeated his promise to give the soldiers much better housing projects which already have water and electricity.
“Itong ibigay ko sa inyo, may tubig na, may electricity, at baka kung may pera uli ako, furnished house. Iyong mga simple lang na ano—just to make a start of it. Mura naman ang galing China,” he said.
“Huwag na kayong magsama ng loob, total ibigay naman natin sa ating kapwa Pilipino natin eh, tsaka mahirap rin. Yang ang konsolasyon ninyo. But it doesn’t mean that government – ako– has forgotten. I commit to you now na may magdating sa inyo na mas bago at mas maganda. Yung faucet may tubig. Yung switch, pag-on mo may ilaw,” he explained.
“Hayaan n’yo iyong mga g____ palailog, mang-aagaw. Kandila lang yung kanila,” he added referring to the KADAMAY members.
Mr. Duterte also said that the government housing in Bulacan, which were not complete and inferior, was not his project. These were built by previous administrations.
But he said that he would make sure that during his term, soldiers would have the houses that they needed in the places that they want. So if they had been assigned for a long time in Palawan or in Mindanao, he would ask them if they would want their housing units to be built there.
“I will buy kung sino lang ang may gusto you have to signify, kung sino lang ang gusto sa Palawan, and then in Mindanao, kung sino lang ang may gusto,” he said.
“But in Manila, bigyan ko na lang kayo ng bago. Yung nandyan walang tubig. But that is not my project,” he added.