MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte
apologized for logistical troubles foreign athletes experienced in the Philippines’ hosting of the 30th
Southeast Asian Games.
“To me, what happened is I’m sorry it did but I’m really apologizing for the
country,” President Duterte said in an exclusive interview with the CNN
Philippines.
Duterte hopes that the investigation on the SEA Games controversy will be resolved before the game ends.
“There will be an investigation at a time when they are still here kasi para malaman nila na there was a reaction from the government that we intend to find out what is wrong,” he added.
The Chief Executive also said that complaints from the delegates should not be minimized as he again floated the idea of military handling big events.
“When you are running a big event you have to be structural and that is why I said it could have been better run by the military,” Duterte said.
Controversy hounded Philippines’ SEA Games hosting such as delayed transport and accommodation of some athletes, unfinished venues, and limited availability of food options among others
The Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee, headed by House of Representatives Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, has since apologized to foreign delegates for the inconvenience.
“You cannot just cast away the discomfort, the suffering of the athletes. Sleeping on the floor, waiting for so many hours, getting hungry,” Duterte said. “This might really be a small matter, but you cannot just flick a finger na ‘ah maliit yan.”/PN
