Rizal Hall, Malacañan Palace
September 19, 2018

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte administered the oath-taking of the Liga ng mga Barangay (LnB) National Board Officers and National Chapter Presidents at the Rizal Hall in Malacañan Palace.

In his speech, the Chief Executive reiterated anew the administration’s campaign to stop the proliferation of illegal drugs in the Philippines to make it comfortable enough for Filipinos to live.

“I know that we have problems, so many problems. But to make it comfortable at least to move around safely, children, I’ll try to do it,” he said.

“And then for my country, my advice to you is I said, if we do not stop or if we cannot stop graft and corruption, kasali na ako diyan, all of us, at we cannot maintain order in this country, mahirapan tayo,” he added to the LnB officials present during the event.

He also sympathized with overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who have to work away from their families, experiencing ‘human degradation and humiliation’ abroad only to know that their children are either addicted to illegal drugs or victimized by those who are dependent to the substance.

“When a father abandons a family to go to somewhere else to work and is not seen by the family for almost three years, that family is dysfunctional. If the mother and father goes out to work and leave their children with their neighbors, mga tiyahin, so that’s why the children are raped because their mother is not there. The human frailty is everywhere and they grow up to be destroyed. Their souls are badly bruised. Tapos ganun na lang ang inabot ng pawis ng tatay pati nanay. Tapos gaganunin lang ninyo ang Pilipino, ang sakripisyo niya,” he said.

After his speech, the President posed with the newly-sworn officials for a photo opportunity.

During the ceremony, the President was accompanied by Presidential Adviser for Political Affairs Francis Tolentino and Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Secretary Christopher Lawrence ‘Bong’ Go.

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