Tito Sotto on Duterte's latest rape joke: Bakit seseryosohin?

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III on Saturday said critics of President Rodrigo Duterte should not take the chief executive's rape joke seriously.

"Joke nga eh bakit seseryosohin?" Sotto told GMA News Online in a text message.

The senator was reacting to the barrage of criticisms against Duterte's rape joke during a speech before members of the Philippine  Army's 2nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade in Iligan City, as he expressed his full support to the soldiers deployed following his declaration of martial law.

“‘Pag naka-rape ka ng tatlo, aminin ko na akin iyon," Duterte told soldiers.

"‘Pag nag-asawa ka ng apat, t—ina, bugbugin ka ng—ito si Delfin,” he added in apparent reference to Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana.

Duterte had been previously criticized for making a rape joke during the May 2016 presidential campaign.

The joke was about Australian missionary Jacqueline Hamill, who was raped and killed by inmates during a hostage-taking incident in Davao City in 1989.

Duterte had told his supporters during a campaign sortie that when he saw Hamill’s corpse, he wished he was the first to rape her after seeing how beautiful she was.

Apologize

In a separate statement on Saturday, Senator Risa Hontiveros condemned Duterte's latest rape joke.

"Again, rape is not a joke. Rape is a crime. Rape is a violation of the Bill of Rights [which] is not suspended by Martial Law. Rape is not a joke," Hontiveros said in a statement.

Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan, meanwhile, said that Duterte should apologize for the latest rape joke.

"Even as a joke it is unacceptable for anyone to joke about rape, more so coming from the commander in chief. He should apologize for the offensive remark," Pangilinan said.

Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, for his part, said that "Duterte hopes to destroy the internal discipline and professionalism of the Armed Forces of the Philippines the same way he destroyed that of the Philippine National Police para gagawin niyang private army [niya] to do as he pleases."

"'Wag na sana nya idamay ang AFP sa mga kagaguhan nya. Very professional na ang AFP ngayon... Let me remind him that he won't be in power forever. I am sure that he would be made to answer for all of his evil deeds the very second he steps out of office," he added. —Kathrina Charmaine Alvarez and Marlly Rome C. Bondoc/ALG, GMA News