Hindi na pinalaki ng Malacañang ang panibagong rape joke ni Pangulong Duterte, sinabing hindi dapat na sineseryso ang mga alam namang bigo lang ng Presidente.

Ito ang inihayag ni Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque makaraang magbiro ang Pangulo sa kalagitnaan ng talumpati nito sa Mandaue City, Cebu nitong Huwebes ng gabi na mataas ang kaso ng panghahalay sa Davao City dahil maraming magagandang babae sa kanyang siyudad.

Sa kanyang press briefing, hindi na nagkomento pa si Roque sa panibagong rape joke ni Duterte, at sa halip ay iginiit na malaki ang tiwala ng Presidente sa kababaihan, kaya naman itinatalaga pa ang ilan sa mga ito sa gobyerno.

“Well I do not know. I cannot really comment on that,” sinabi ni Roque kahapon. “But what the President has done recently is he has appointed yet another woman to the point of Chief Justice. This comes after his previous appointments which were mostly women, including the Department of Tourism Secretary [Berna] Romulo and Acting Secretary for the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) who is also a woman, Gee Orogo.”

Aniya, hindi naman binibigyang-katwiran ni Duterte na hinahalay ang mga babae dahil magaganda ang mga ito.

“I don’t think we should give too much weight on what the President says by way of a joke,” ani Roque. “

“Some may not approve but you know I can tell you this already: there’s a difference between sense of humor in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

“And from what I have seen myself, although I’m from Luzon, people in the south don’t think, particularly in Cebu and the Visayas, they don’t really take things as seriously as people in Luzon,” paliwanag pa ni Roque.

Gayunman, nilinaw ni Roque na hindi naman ito nangangahulugan na okay lang sa mga taga-Mindanao ang mga rape joke.

“They’re not OK with rape jokes but let’s just say that perhaps the standard of what is offensive and what is not offensive is more liberal in the south,” ani Roque.

-Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos