President Rodrigo Duterte has lashed out at the media in a rant in which he accused the press of trying to take away his power.
Speaking to the press on Wednesday, Duterte said he had been subjected to a “disgusting” media campaign, saying: “They are trying to destroy my power.”
“They want to take it away from me,” he said.
“If you’re a journalist, you have to do what I do.”‘
It’s a very big lie’The comments came as Duterte said that he was disappointed in the media, who he said were trying to discredit him by accusing him of drug abuse.
“They’re trying to get you to believe that I am addicted to drugs, and that I have been a drug lord, and they are trying, like, to destroy me,” Duterte said.
“It’s not true, it’s a big lie.”‘
I don’t need it’The president added that he didn’t need the media “and they will not give me a platform.”
He also called the press “a threat to democracy.”
“I don (not) need the press, I don’t want the media.
I don.
I just want to do my work, to fight for the country, to be fair, honest and trustworthy,” Duterte told reporters.”
But if they are going to attack me, attack me.
I’m not going to be attacked, and if they do, then they will go away,” he added.
The President has been under pressure for his harsh rhetoric against the media since he took office in June.
Last month, the Philippine Daily Inquirer published a report accusing Duterte of abuse of power and corruption and said that the President had “lacked the moral fibre” to lead the country.
The Inquirers report said Duterte was a former president who was “a convicted drug lord” and that he had repeatedly abused his power by pardoning people convicted of crimes.
The Duterte administration responded to the Inquirery report by saying that the president had never committed such a crime.
But the President, who has faced criticism for his drug war, has been criticized for his tough rhetoric on the issue.