Malacañang on Tuesday said President Rodrigo Duterte believes in freedom of speech, adding that the chief executive did not file libel complaints against his critics.
“The President believes in freedom of speech and a free marketplace of ideas, and he has demonstrated this in his entire public career. As a public official, the Chief Executive has not filed a libel case against his critics,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a statement.
This was in reaction to the June 2021 Social Weather Stations survey which showed that 45% adult Filipinos believed that publishing or broadcasting criticisms against Duterte is dangerous.
Roque also noted that the SWS poll also showed improvement of net personal freedom of Duterte which increased from +5 in May 2021 to +18 in June 2021.
“The President simply focuses on his work with the welfare of the Filipinos foremost in his mind,” he also pointed out.
Last year, ABS-CBN went off the air following the National Telecommunications Commission order for it to cease operations. Its shutdown affected the jobs of its 11,000 workers.
Meanwhile, Malacañang continued to deny that the President had a hand in the shutdown even as Duterte continued to throw tirades against the media firm.—LDF, GMA News
0 Comments