Dino chides Tomas on Duterte’s stance on China

Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, Michael Dino took a swipe at Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña for blaming President Rodrigo Duterte’s relationship with China as a reason for the proliferation of illegal drugs in the country.

“The proliferation of illegal drugs is not due to President Rodrigo Duterte’s adherence to an independent foreign policy which resulted in the warming of relations with China and other foreign nations,” Dino’s statement read.

“The acts and pronouncements of President Duterte show he is not afraid of China contrary to what Mayor Tomas Osmeña would like us to believe,” he said.

Dino also claimed that Osmeña’s comments towards the President were intended to divert public attention away from the accusations hurled against him by Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II that he is a drug protector.

“Remember this Mayor Osmeña you might not be on the list of PDEA or the PNP may not have received any report about (you) being an alleged drug protector but the DOJ has an affidavit that alleged that you received P7 million from Jaguar,” Dino said.

Last Saturday, Osmeña said the country’s drug problem won’t be solved if President Duterte’s administration remains uncritical towards China.

The mayor believed that the supply of illegal drugs in the Philippines, as well as materials on putting up shabu laboratories, came from China.

“The president has done so much. The question is why is he seems to be afraid to move against China. The issue might be addressed by having all those containers, thousands from China to make them go to Singapore,” Osmeña said.