The speaker of the Philippines House of Representatives, Pantaleon
Alvarez is an old friend and powerful ally of president Rodrigo Duterte
so it comes as no surprise when the commander in chief sprang to the
defence of his pal who was accused of adultery.
The Philippines public
has however been enraged at the manner in which the president went about
this business, he practically admitted to being an adulterer himself
while defending the practice. Describing it as a ‘non-issue’, the
President said in a speech:
‘This is a world of hypocrisy. Who among you
here does not have a mistress?’ But the comments drew sharp rebukes in
the conservative and mainly Catholic nation where divorce is publicly
frowned upon. Senator Risa Hontiveros said: ‘All of it is sexist and
misogynistic to explain improper behaviour simply by virtue of being
male.
‘It sends a message that undermines the many struggles and gains so far
for women’s rights and gender equality.’ Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez made
headlines in the past week when he publicly admitted having fathered
eight children, six of them with two women other than his wife.
Duterte, in the televised speech to government employees in Manila,
admitted his comments defending Alvarez’s affairs were ‘a chauvinist
statement’.
‘But really there are so many women and you (have) so short a time in
this world. My God!’ he said in comments that drew laughter from the
crowd.
‘The thing there is that you’re able to support the children. That’s it.’
Duterte said that unlike married Christian Filipinos who are allowed a
single wife, Alvarez ‘never converted to Christianity. So he is not
bound by the rules of the number of women that you can have.’
Duterte, 72, whose first marriage was annulled and who is in a long-term
relationship with another woman, has openly boasted about having
mistresses and using Viagra to have sex with them.
‘Who isn’t entitled to happiness? Ask these lawmakers, how many of them
have two, three or four mistresses? Ask them,’ Duterte said in his first
public comments on the Alvarez controversy.
Elizabeth Angsioco,
national chairwoman of the Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines
said the president’s stance reeks of double standards. She said: ‘These
are men in positions of power so it’s unacceptable and appalling that
they just speak lightly of these things. It’s very dangerous.’
360L
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