Santiago believes Duterte was prodded to order him to resign

Former Dangerous Drugs Board chief Dionisio Santiago on Wednesday said that someone must have persuaded President Rodrigo Duterte to call for his resignation, following his statement on the "mega" drug rehabilitation center in Nueva Ecija.

In an interview on "Unang Balita," Santiago said that his statement calling the construction of  the 10,000-bed drug rehabilitation center as "impractical" and a "mistake" was misinterpreted.

"Wala naman, hindi naman ako nagpuna roon eh. Actually,  pina-review ko [ang project]... wala akong sinabing [it is a] mistake. It came from your, yung mga ka-peers ninyo ... Eh yung sa tropa ng media," Santiago said.

"Ewan ko eh, baka intentional, ang tanong sa akin, are you saying that the President committed a mistake? Sabi ko hindi siya nagkamali doon. Syempre the President hindi naman nakikinig sa adviser 'yan, although he has his own mind," Santiago added.

But he declined to disclose the identity of the person who supposedly influenced President Duterte.

"Meron akong speculation, meron kaming assessment pero 'wag na lang. Tama na 'yon," he said.

In an interview on ANC, Santiago was asked if the building of the mega rehab center in Nueva Ecija was a mistake.

Santiago replied: "Impractical, that was a mistake, ang problema ang naging ... excited si President."

"Pero yung ginasta doon pupuwedeng ginamit sa mga community-based rehab 'yan na maliliit which can accommodate siguro mga 150 to 200, masyadong malaki ang 5,000 saan ka kukuha niyan?" Dionisio added.

Meanwhile, Santiago said that he does not know what "triggered" the President to urge him to quit from his post.

"...May nag-inform sa akin, may nagbulong na mukhang kinokontra ko raw ang Presidente, sabi ko, sabi ko kay Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, paki-review niyo ang interview ko." 

Santiago tendered his letter of irrevocable resignation to Malacañang last Tuesday. He earlier said that Duterte may have been ill-advised when he accepted the construction of the mega rehabilitation center in Nueva Ecija.

Santiago said that he would just work in the private sector. "Irrevocable ang resignation ko." 

He added that he is "very sure" that he would not be offered to take over another position in the government.

Support for Duterte

Santiago may be hurt by the "quit order," but he said he will continue to support the President, particularly the campaign against illegal drugs.

"Tuloy naman tayo, we will continue to support, ang sinasabi ko lang...yung mga detractors, kagaya ng ginawa niyo kay Digong, sabi ni Digong patayin niyo, pero 'wag niyong putulin doon, may qualification yoon eh, ang sabi ni Digong, patayin niyo 'pag lumaban hindi niya sinabing basta patayin niyo," Santiago said. 

Meanwhile, he also said that he wants his successor to continue the programs he had started at the DDB.

"I think we were able to put into place most of the programs. Sabi ko ituloy niyo, we are not here working for this administration alone, eh matanda na ako. Pareho kami ng thinking ni Digong, hindi para sa amin 'to, para sa next generation 'to." —LBG, GMA News