Manila, Philippines – As President Rodrigo Duterte enters his final year in the office, the militant fishers’ group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA) on Wednesday joined various progressive organizations in a protest calling for his ouster at the presidential palace in Mendiola, Manila.
In a statement, the fishers’ group said that President Duterte “doesn’t deserve a glorious farewell and should be removed from his power immediately to prevent any attempt to hold onto his position”.
“Many horrible things could still happen in the country within the remaining year of Mr. Duterte. He could create conditions that would pave the way for his term extension. Or he could unleash more brutal crackdown against dissenters and political rivals to tighten his grip from power. So much for a Duterte regime that starves and kills Filipinos. We seek for his immediate removal in Malacanang,” Fernando Hicap, PAMALAKAYA National Chairperson said in a statement.
PAMALAKAYA centered the issue of Philippine sovereignty in the “anti-Duterte” protest, saying it would not wait for the next presidential polls to install a new administration that would renounce Duterte’s subservient foreign policies. Rather, PAMALAKAYA said that alongside with seeking for Mr. Duterte’s removal, it will continue to challenge whoever his successor is to renounce Duterte’s puppetry to China and decisively regain the Philippines’ control and possession in the West Philippine Sea.
“Our call for Duterte’s ouster is likewise a challenge to his successor to take a 180-degree turn on his policies, especially those that surrender our territorial rights to foreign aggressors. We call on the Filipinos already disgruntled on Duterte’s governance not to wait for the next presidential derby to replace this administration. Instead, they should join the growing people’s movements seeking an end to this murderous and puppet regime,” ended Hicap. ###
