PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. simply responded to the public with a sarcastic laugh amid calls from the public for him to take a credible drug test.
Something which frustrated/angered the public.
“We saw his interview yesterday. We were just laughed at,” said Vivian Velez, Co-Convenor, Marcos Resign Movement | Actress.
But for former Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Atty. Salvador Panelo, the president has no other choice but to laugh at the said issue because…
“Actually, his real problem is that he doesn’t know how to respond – it’s really hard. [Just laugh it off.] Surely, you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t. That – that is his problem now. He really has nowhere to go. It’s as if he’s on a tightrope – walking, balancing – what, am I going to fall from here? That is what’s happening to him,” Atty. Salvador Panelo, Former Chief Presidential Legal Counsel stressed.
The Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs led by Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa held a second hearing to investigate the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) leaks on Tuesday, 7th of May – the issue involving Marcos Jr in the use of illegal drugs.
Leaked PDEA documents are “authentic”, no doubt
Atty. Panelo said that the legitimacy of the said PDEA classified documents is no longer an issue.
“The issue is already resolved that the document is really genuine. There’s no doubt about that, even before Maricel Soriano. So, the only question there is, ‘Sir, what now? Were you a user before? If you were a user before, there are plenty who used to use it who have already rehabilitated so there’s no problem.’ The problem now is if you are still a user, that’s the problem,” Atty. Panelo stressed.
Atty. Panelo clarified that the public should not make a conclusion simply from those documents.
However, Marcos Jr’s drug test results which only took more than two minutes is still questionable for the people, especially if it is compared to Vice President Sara Duterte’s drug test result which took almost four and a half time and in much more detail.
Which is why the public cannot be blamed for continuing to call for the president to undergo a credible drug test.
Don’t just laugh it off your involvement in illegal drugs
In the end, the former chief presidential legal counsel said…
“The only way to resolve that is for President Marcos Jr. to face that issue. You can’t just laugh it off or you just ignore it. You really need to face that,” Panelo stated.
“And the administration, particularly President Marcos Jr., otherwise, there’s really a problem. You really have a problem there. You should fix that. That’s easy to fix anyway – just take a drug test,” Panelo said.
