Rizal Hall, Malacañan Palace
30 June 2016
At exactly12 noon, Supreme Court Justice Bienvenido Reyes sworn into office Rodrigo Roa Duterte as the 16th President of the Philippines in a simple ceremony held in Rizal Hall, Malacañan Palace.
In his inaugural address, President Duterte said he would restore the eroding faith and trust in government and will get rid of corruption in all levels of bureaucracy.
The President, in a stern voice, also said, “You mind your work. I will mind mine.” This comes after he urged Congress and the Commission on Human Rights to allow him to do his job in solving the country’s burgeoning problem on illegal drugs. Reminding them that as a lawyer and former prosecutor, he knows the limit of the power and authority that comes with his position as president.
Quoting words from Franklin Delano Roosevelt, “The test of government is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide for those who have little,” and Abraham Lincoln’s, “You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong; You cannot help the poor by discouraging the rich; You cannot help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer; You cannot further the brotherhood of men by inciting class hatred,” President Duterte said these words will be the stanchion of his economic, financial and political policies.
With this, President Duterte rolled out his first marching orders to the members of his Cabinet. Among those mentioned were the streamlining of requirements and reducing processing time in all applications of all government agencies, and to refraining them from changing or bending rules of government contracts, transactions and projects already approved and awaiting implementation.
He added that he will champion transparency in business transactions and government projects from conception to consummation, and that his administration is committed to implement all signed peace agreements in accordance to the constitutional and legal reform.
The President closed his address with these words, “I have no friends to serve, I have no enemies to harm.” He urged everyone to join him in the crusade for a better and brighter tomorrow.
At age 71, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte succeeds Benigno S. Aquino III after a landslide victory of over 16 million votes in the recent May 9 presidential elections.
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