Duterte calls ex-Colombian president ‘idiot’ for comment on drug war

President Rodrigo Duterte lashed out on Wednesday at former Colombian President Cesar Gaviria and called him an “idiot” for criticizing his brutal war on drugs.

“Colombia has been lecturing me, that idiot,” Duterte said in a speech at the 115th anniversary of the Bureau of Customs, referring to Gaviria.

In an opinion piece published at the New York Times, Gaviria told Duterte that “the drug menace cannot be solved by the “heavy-handed” approach of killing drug addicts.” He said he was hoping that Duterte would not commit the same mistakes that he did in dealing with Colombia’s drug problem.

In a statement, Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said Malacañang respects Gaviria’s opinion. “We respect the opinion of former President Cesar Gaviria that Colombia’s experience of “war against drugs” cannot be won by the armed forces and law enforcement agencies alone,” Abella said.

“The Philippine President rightly understood the same insight when he began to address not just crime and illegal drugs but also broadened government efforts into a public health issue,” he added



[SOURCE]

Loading...

SHARE THIS