Palace on Gordon’s ‘Wow PI’ suggestion: Maybe he was being funny

Malacañang on Tuesday dismissed the suggestion of Senator Dick Gordon to change the Tourism slogan to “Welcome to the PI,” a swipe at President Rodrigo Duterte's expletives.

In a news conference in Malacañang on Tuesday, presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella was asked to comment on Gordon's comment.  “I think he was being funny,” Abella said.

Gordon, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, had said, “We have to protect the country from bad statements and the President has the duty to be a statesman. He must not be heard saying all bad words.” 

In jest, Gordon suggested changing the country's tourism slogan from "It's More Fun in the Philippines" to 'Welcome to the PI’ or 'Wow PI.'" PI may stand for "Philippine Islands" but it can also refer to a shorthand version of a Filipino expletive.

Gordon made the comment after Duterte earned international criticism for remarking that he would do a "Hitler" and kill three million drug addicts in the Philippines.

Duterte had already apologized for his remark. "I would like to make it here and now that there was never an intention on my part to derogate the memory of the six million Jews murdered by the Germans... I apologize profoundly and deeply to the Jewish [community]," Duterte said.

Duterte allies

Due to his controversial statements, Duterte’s allies in Congress advised that the president watch out what he says in public.

House Majority Floor Leader and Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas told him to stop talking and focus on his work.

Abella, in response to the commentaries of Duterte's allies, paraphrased a statement of American economist John Kenneth Galbraith: “When the situation changes, he will change his mind and he will change his attitude.” — VVP, GMA News