MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte was "satisfied" and "very happy" with the performance of his government in the past 6 years, for which he thanked his Cabinet, an official said on Tuesday.

Cabinet Secretary Melvin Matibag said Duterte "was very delighted" after officials presented their accomplishments during his last full Cabinet meeting on Monday night.

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"I think he is satisfied, he is very happy. He personally thanked 'yung mga Cabinet official who made a lot of sacrifices. For one, si [DSWD] Secretary Rolly Bautista very quiet but very effective. Of course si Secretary Tugade, economic team," Matibag told reporters in a chance interview.

"Lahat naman na tumulong at nagsakripisyo for him to fulfill ang promise n'ya sa ating mga taumbayan noong sya’y kumandidato noong 2016," added Matibag, who is also the secretary-general of Duterte's party, the PDP-Laban.

(All helped and sacrificed for him to fulfill his promise during the campaign in 2016.)

The Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) kickstarted on Monday the "Duterte Legacy Summit" in Pasay City, where select Cabinet officials present their cluster's achievements since 2016. It will end on Tuesday.

On Monday, the officials talked about the country's fiscal position, improvements in the transport sector, the COVID-19 response, and milestones in Duterte's infrastructure drive "Build, Build, Build."

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The infrastructure program, which was hoped to spur economic growth in by providing jobs and boosting spending, has completed 15 out of 112 projects in the pipeline as of January this year, according to the Senate Economic Planning Office.

• 28 'Build, Build' Build' projects finished by 2022: official
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The incoming Marcos administration meanwhile will inherit at least P12 trillion in debt. The country has been borrowing heavily in the last few years due to its COVID-19 response and recovery efforts, and the infrastructure program launched prior to the pandemi

But Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea on Monday said the outgoing President would leave a far better Philippines compared to when he assumed his post 6 years ago.

"Our administration, just like any, had many ups and downs. But what is certain is that [the] Duterte administration is leaving behind a far better Philippines than was what handed over to us 6 years ago," he said.

During Monday's Cabinet meeting, Matibag said an "upbeat" Duterte instructed his aides, "Palaging mahalin natin yung Pilipinas at maglingkod tayo nang tama."

"Binilin ng Presidente until the last day of work, trabaho pa rin. Kaya sabi ko nga kanina, kahit sabi na last Cabinet na yon, it does not mean we will stop working today until noontime ng June 30," Matibag said in a press briefing.

(There were no important instructions just like what the President said that until the last day of work, they should work. Like what I said earlier, even if it was the last Cabinet meeting, it does not mean we will stop working today until noontime ng June 30.)

Duterte is already looking forward to retiring in his hometown Davao City, said Acting Palace spokesperson Martin Andanar. The outgoing President might teach there, said Medialdea.

Duterte earlier joked that there was nothing left to do in his retirement but to look at pretty women and depose Satan in hell.

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