Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte launched a tirade against the country’s Commission on Audit, which he claims is hampering the work of his administration.
In a speech in Manila, Duterte, who is known for incendiary rhetoric, railed against state auditors in an expletive-filled rant. The Commission on Auditing, known as the COA, is an independent body charged with examining spending by Philippine state agencies. It has filed several reports accusing the Duterte administration of waste and mismanagement of funds.
According to Philippine news site Rappler, the president joked that the COA auditors should be detained to prevent them from doing their work. “Those sons of bitches in COA. Every time, there is always something wrong. What’s up with this COA? What if we kidnap someone from COA and we torture them here? Sons of bitches,” he was reported as commenting, based on an English translation provided by Rappler.
It was not the first time Duterte has threatened members of the agency with violence. In a past comment in September, he once suggested pushing an auditor down stairs. “Who’s from COA? Push him down the stairs so he won’t be able to file a report anymore,” he said at the time, according to Rappler. 