In Bacolod, Duterte delivers speech behind bulletproof glass panel again

MANILA—President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said he’d have no problem being assassinated, as he again delivered a speech behind a bulletproof glass panel.

“Kaya nilagyan na ng Presidential Guard, kasi baka targetin ako doon sa malayo,” Duterte said in Bacolod. “Ako 74 years old, kung mamatay ako ngayon sa bala ng assassination, kaligaya ko na lang. Pagod na ako. Gusto ko na ring sumibat.”

(The presidential guard placed a bulletproof glass because I might get shot from afar. But I’m already 74 years old. If I get assassinated now, I’d be happy. I’m tired, I just want to get out of here.)

“Pero ang PSG (Presidential Security Group), ayaw. Gusto lagyan ng ganu’n. Pero ako . . . Tapos na ako, tapos na ako. Mga anak ko, mayor na, tatakbo na nga ng congressman pati vice mayor. Ayaw naman tumakbo ng taga-Davao. Ako gusto kong umalis,” he said, referring to his 3 children — Sara, Paolo, and Sebastian — with his former wife Elizabeth Zimmerman.

(The PSG won’t allow me to die. I am done. One of my children is a mayor while the rest are running for congressman and a vice mayor.)

This is not the first time that Duterte delivered a speech behind a protective panel.

Earlier this month, the Presidential Security Group placed a similar contraption in front of the lectern when Duterte attended the PDP-Laban campaign rally in Malabon on April 2.

PSG Commander, Brigadier-General Jose Eriel Niembra previously said that the bulletproof glass is part of security protocol since the President spoke in an open arena.

• PSG explains glass panel cover during Duterte’s Malabon visit

On Thursday, Duterte also delivered his speech in an open area at the Bacolod City Government Center Football Field.

The President had previously acknowledged that some people wanted him dead.

“May gusto mang pumatay sa akin. Pero palagay ko pa naman ang buhay ay suwerte-suwerte lang. Kung panahon ko na talaga, wala na akong magawa,” he previously said.

(Someone wants me killed, but I think life sometimes depends on luck. If it’s really my time to go, then I can’t do anything about it.)