Palace on Duterte’s Forbes ranking: Real power emanates from people

Real power emanates from the people, Malacañang said Wednesday, after President Rodrigo Duterte made it to Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s most powerful individuals this year.

Duterte was ranked 69th in Forbes magazine's latest list of The World's Most Powerful People — a catalog of the 75 most influential men and women in the world.

This is the second time Duterte made the list, which is topped by Chinese President Xi Jinping this year. Duterte came in 70th in 2017.

“President Duterte has many times acknowledged that the true source of power is the people,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.

“As Chief Executive for almost two years, he has faithfully served our people by promoting the interests of the Filipino people and the Filipino nation first,” he added.

Forbes' short profile on Duterte mentioned his controversial war on drugs in which thousands have been killed since he took office on June 30, 2016 and his "raw and vulgar" rhetoric.

"The anti-drug war, the pursuit of an independent foreign policy, the pro-poor policies and programs of the Duterte administration among others are reflective of the current government’s advancing the welfare of the greatest number of our countrymen,” Roque said.

“The presidency, in the mind of PRRD [Duterte], begins and ends with public trust where real power emanates.”

Apart from Duterte, the other personalities on the elite list are Pope Francis, philanthropist Bill Gates, Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Google co-founder Larry Page. —KBK, GMA News