Duterte on first day of campaign: 'Galit talaga ako sa gobyerno'

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte retained his tough talk at the start of his presidential campaign on Tuesday, zeroing in not only on criminals but also on government.

Speaking in Tondo where he and running mate Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano held their kickoff rally, Duterte's expletive-filled tirades hit out not just on his usual target of drug lords, but also the administration of President Benigno Aquino III.

"Galit ako para sa inyo... p—ng ina itong gobyerno, it is not for the people," Duterte said to cheers from the crowd.

Duterte said "Daang Matuwid" — the centerpiece of the Aquino administration's governance platform and the campaign of Liberal Party standard bearer Mar Roxas — does not exist.

He slammed the Aquino administration because of its supposed inaction in pressing issues such as the "laglag bala" extortion racket at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and the growing illegal drug trade.

If he is elected president, he reiterated his desire to see criminals, especially drug lords, killed.

"Kapag ako naging president, sabihin ko sa military at police, hanapin ninyo sila [drug lords], patayin ninyo," Duterte said, saying he'll make sure to have the back of the law enforcement operatives.

"Kung may idemanda kayo, ako idemanda ninyo," he added.

He also championed federalism, saying it is the only way to achieve peace in Mindanao.

Duterte took the stage about 7:20 p.m. accompanied by his partner Honeylet and their daughter Veronica. He initially refused to face the cameras but was urged by his daughter to do so.

"Bakit ba? Ang likod ko hindi gwapo?" he joked. 

Tondo crowd

Morga and Zamora streets in Tondo were closed to put up a stage for the program, which saw Filipino soprano Myramae Meneses sing the National Anthem and April Boy Regino and son JC perform to entertain the crowd.

Duterte was supposed to take his oath as PDP-Laban chairman at an earlier event in Club Intramuros. However, he decided to do it in Tondo. 

Also in attendance were Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing, who is running for the city's mayoralty post, and several candidates for councilor.

Before 7 p.m., Cayetano took the stage and shared the story of his father, the late Senator Renato Cayetano. He said his father went through a lot of hardships before he become a senator.

He also shared that at the height of his stomach cancer, his father expressed disappointment over the state of the Philippines.

"Bakit tayo nagkaganito? Unang una po sa korapsyon," Cayetano said. "Bawal ho ba magnakaw sa Tondo? Bakit walang sumasagot? Bawal ho ba magnakaw sa buong Pilipinas?"

Cayetano then told the crowd the effects of stealing from others, especially from the people's money. —KBK/JST, GMA News