Marcos to SOLCOM troops: Don't be deceived by political noise

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday urged the troops not to be deceived by the political noise and instead focus on their jobs. 

Marcos said this during his talk with the soldiers from the Southern Luzon Command. 

“Huwag kayong nalilinlang sa mga nangyayari (Do not be deceived by what’s been happening). Let’s stay focused. Pare-pareho tayo (All of us),” Marcos said.

“Ako, ganoon ang isip, pagka marami — maingay ang nangyayari, iniisip ko lagi: ano ba talaga trabaho ko? Trabaho ko ba’y makipag-away diyan? Trabaho ko ba'y makipagdebate diyan sa mga walang kwentang bagay? Hindi,” he added. 

(That’s my mindset when a lot of things are happening — when there's too much noise. I’m always thinking, what’s my job? Is it my job to fight with them? Is it my duty to debate about senseless things? No.” 

The President said his prime duty is to improve the situation in the Philippines.

“Ang trabaho ko ay pagandahin ang Pilipinas. Kayo naman, may misyon din kayo,” Marcos said. 

(No. My job is to improve the Philippines. You also have your own mission.) 

Amid the political bickering, Marcos reminded the troops of their mission and that is “to defend  the people and the Republic of the Philippines and the state of the Republic of the Philippines.”

“Basta’t maliwanag sa pag-iisip natin. We have the same mission. I do it for the civilian end, kayo sa military police end. Pero pareho ang mission natin,” Marcos said.

[Let us be clear. We have the same mission. I do it for the civilian end, yours is the military-police end. We have the same mission.]

“Let’s keep that mission clear in our mind. And kung nadi-distract tayo -- siyempre maraming sigaw, maraming ingay --- ‘pag nadi-distract tayo at sabi papaano na ito? Madali iyan, madali ang sagot diyan: Ano ba ang mission ko? Iyon, ‘yun ang tutuparin ko,” he added.

[Let's keep that mission clear in our mind. And if there will be distractions, if we are distracted ... it's easy. We have have to remind ourselves — what is my mission? That I would have to honor.]

Marcos’ remark came after former President Rodrigo Duterte challenged the Philippine military to support the 1987 Constitution instead of supporting his successor, whom he again accused of being a drug addict. 

The former president’s daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, said she "agrees with the assumption" of her father that  Marcos is a drug addict.

The Dutertes and Marcoses have been in a rift, with the Vice President even saying that she would have Marcos, First Lady Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez be killed if she was assassinated. —AOL/RSJ, GMA Integrated News