MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has warned police officials who are supposedly trying to revive the criminal group Kuratong Baleleng, saying they do not stand a chance against the government.
Duterte mentioned Kuratong Baleleng after reading the names of some mayors who are allegedly involved in irregularities.
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"There are two infamous mayors here. You know who's the other one? Parojinog," the president said during a televised public address last Monday.
In 2017, Duterte claimed the Parojinogs of Ozamiz City had formed an anti-communist vigilante group called Kuratong Baleleng that degenerated into a criminal gang. The clan, the president said, used the group to silence policemen and critics who defied them.
"You, policemen, b****, there are policemen in Zamboanga del Sur who seem to be reviving the gang...that controlled Ozamiz? Kuratong Baleleng... I read it in the briefer and I think it came from you," Duterte said.
"Better shape up...You want to die early. You don't stand a chance against the government. Even if you kill (Interior Secretary Eduardo) Año, even if you kill me, even if you kill (Defense Secretary Delfin) Lorenzana, the Republic of the Philippines will survive," he added.