'Black' state of PH applicable during Duterte admin — Palace

Malacañang said Tuesday that describing the current state of the Philippines as ''black'' could be used during the Duterte administration.

''Unang-una, mayroon silang sinabi tungkol sa madilim eh, 'Itim ngayon ang kulay ng bansa, sa gutom at krimen nagluluksa,' so pag sinabi ba natin na itim ngayon ang kulay, mas madedescribe siguro natin noong nakaraang administrasyon na sobrang itim at ngayon ay papaliwanag sa panahon ng kasalukuyang administrasyon,'' Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said at a briefing.

(First of all, they said something about black, 'The current color of the country is black as it laments hunger and crime,' so if we say that the current color is black, it could best describe the previous administration and right now, the situation is improving under the present administration.)

''Papunta na po sa paputi, konting kula na lang, medyo maputi na. Hindi pa lang po... hindi perfectly white katulad ng aking sinabi pero doon po patungo ang kasalukuyang administrasyon,'' Castro responded when asked about where does the Marcos administration is headed.

(It's now headed towards white. With a little sun-bleaching, it would turn white. It's not perfectly white but it's where the present administration is headed.)

Castro was asked for reaction on Vice President Sara Duterte endorsing the reelection bid of Senator Imee Marcos, sister of President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr., weeks after the latter withdrew from the administration's Alyansa Para Sa Bagong Pilipinas.

On Monday, Imee released on her Facebook page the political advertisement where she was endorsed by the Vice President.

In the 31-second video, Duterte and Imee, who were both dressed in black, slammed the current state of the Philippines.

"Itim ngayon ang kulay ng bansa sa gutom at krimen, nagluluksa," Duterte said.

Imee followed Duterte's line and said, "Gutom na ang sikmura, gutom pa sa hustisya. Ginigipit ang hindi ka-alyansa."

Duterte ended the spiel by endorsing Imee.

No negative campaigning

Asked if the matter was taken up with the President, Castro maintained that the Chief Executive does not want negative campaigning during election season, especially if it is misinformation.

''Of course, hindi po nais ng Pangulo itong mga ganitong klaseng negatibo na pangangampanya, lalong-lalo na po kung ito ay fake news,'' Castro said.

(Of course, the President does not want this negative campaigning, especially if it is fake news.)

She then called on voters to be vigilant, particularly on campaign materials being used this Eleksyon 2025.

''Huwag pong magpaloko sa mga sinasabi sa iilang campaign ads. Alamin ang katotohanan, iwasan ang fake news. Dignidad mo, boto mo,'' Castro said.

(Do not be misled by some campaign ads. Let us know the truth and avoid fake news. Your dignity reflects your vote.)

Crime statistics

At the same briefing, Police Major General Roderick Alba, the Director for Police Community Relations, was also asked to comment about the campaign video. He said this ''creates a lot of perception.''

Alba further mentioned the huge decrease in the crime statistics in the first quarter of this year.

''But, sa amin po sa PNP at tuloy-tuloy lang po ang aming kampanya against all forms of lawlessness (In PNP, we continue our campaign against all forms of lawlessness). But we can all speak of our—what we have, iyong ating crime statistics, which we actually reported few days or few weeks ago, where it covers January to April of 2025,'' Alba said.

''As compared to last year, where we have a big decrease of 26% sa aming crime statistics. So, we stick with the reality of what we have now, iyong aming data,'' he added.

Alba also said ''we should not be affected by these negativities,'' if any.

The police official vowed that the streets would be safe for the citizens, adding that some highly sensationalized crimes do not reflect the peace and order situation of the entire country. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News

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