Duterte delivers profanity-free speech; vows to be 'prim and proper' if he becomes president

Tough-talking Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday showed a glimpse of how he will behave if he is elected president.

Speaking to the graduates of the Lyceum of the Philippines (LPU), Duterte was able to make his speech almost profanity-free. 

"If I become President I will be prim and proper," he even promised. 

Duterte then took the chance to explain why he talks the way he does.

He said he is actually taking “the posture of a radical” when speaking in a brutally frank manner. This is to challenge the ruling class and the public officials who seem to only care for the elite.

“Sinasadya ko talaga iyang bunganga ko. I am testing the elite in this country because, historically, we are fundamentally a feudal country,” he said.

"I am testing the waters of radicalism. (I act) as if I am irreverent, (but) it’s not really true. I pray to God always. Baka patayin ako ng dalawang ito," he said referring to rivals former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Davao City's mayor also took a swipe at Manila-based media. Duterte said he does not have such a bad mouth in reality. He said he just uses foul language because he is fed up with journalists who twist his statements.

"In this country, (the ruling class) wants everything to be prim and proper. They control the media, they control television and all, and they want to do governance in accordance with their interest. That’s how it is. Noon pa ganoon talaga," he said.

"Hindi ako ganoon kabastos, pero sinasadya ko iyon because, you know, mabayaran sila, especially the writers, and there are a lot of them. They would really slant, and every statement I make they would slant. Sinasadya ko tuloy, talagang minumura ko sila," he said.

Minutes before ending his speech, he recalled the hostage-taking incident in Davao City in 1989 involving an Australian missionary that became the subject of his controversial rape remark. Duterte could not stop himself and blurted out a curse word while describing the criminals who killed some of the hostages.

He then apologized for it, saying he put aside his usual vulgarity-laced speeches for that event “in deference to the academic institution.”

Duterte graduated from LPU with a Bachelor of Arts, major in Political Science, degree in 1968. — Trisha Macas/APG, GMA News