Duterte's martial law quip just an 'expression of frustration,' says Palace

President Rodrigo Duterte's advice to his successor to declare martial law in order to rid the government of corruption is just an "expression of frustration" and should not be taken literally, Malacañang said Tuesday.

"I think tinututukan lang ni Presidente na napaka-embedded sa sistema ng gobyerno natin ang korapsyon na kung hindi mo tatanggalin ang lahat ng tao sa gobyerno ay baka hindi matigil," presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in an Unang Balita interview.

(I think the President is just highlighting how embedded corruption is in the government, that it can only be stopped if you remove all the people in the government.)

During his sixth and final State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, Duterte expressed exasperation over the "endemic" corruption in the government.

"You cannot stop corruption unless you overturn the government completely," he said.

"If I were the next president if you think there is a need for you to change everybody in the system, then you declare martial law." 

Roque said Duterte's remark should not be taken literally.

"It's an expression of frustration, kumbaga dahil talagang gustong-gusto niyang linisin ang gobyerno pero he could not do it in six years time, hindi naman po literally ibig sabihin kelangan pa mag martial law pa para diyan," he said.

(It's an expression of frustration because the President really wanted to clean the government but he could not do it in six years time. That doesn't literally mean that we really need martial law to address corruption.)

Under the 1987 Constitution, the President can only proclaim martial law in the event of foreign invasion and rebellion when public safety requires it. —KBK, GMA News