‘You are the only one’

TOKYO – Almost a year after his much criticized kissing of a married Filipina on the lips in South Korea, President Duterte kissed five women here in the presence of his longtime partner Honeylet Avanceña, whom he described as his First Lady.

But there was no kissing on the lips this time for Duterte, who instead gave cheek-to-cheek kisses to four women who went on stage during his meeting with the Filipino community here. Another woman tried to kiss the President on the lips but hesitated. She settled for a kiss on the cheek.

Before the kissing spree, Duterte said there was nothing malicious about him kissing women, contrary to the claims of his critics who accused him of misogyny. He then called for volunteers, prompting dozens of women to shout and raise their hands. 

“Pero maghalik ako ganun, lips to lips talaga. Sino ngayon ang mag-volunteer? Sino ma’am kay mag-uwi na ako (If I kiss somebody, it’s lips to lips. Who wants to volunteer? I want to go home already),” the President joked.

“How about you ma’am? First, you should not be married. Second, you should not be a minor. How about you, ma’am? Do you smooch? Not like that,” he added. 

Duterte ended his two-hour freewheeling speech by asking whether there were widows who want to kiss him. Avanceña, who was also on stage, was seen smiling while presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo was taking photos while the kissing spree was taking place.

Some women who attended the meeting were asking Duterte to hug them while others were requesting for a selfie and shouting “I love you, Tatay.”

In June last year, Duterte drew flak for kissing a married woman on the lips during a meeting with the Filipino community in South Korea. The President was unfazed by the criticisms, saying kissing female supporters has been his style since he was mayor of Davao City.

While he projects himself as a lover of women, Duterte told the Filipino community here that he used to be gay. He mocked his staunch critic Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV by asking the audience whether they thought the senator was gay.

“Mabuti’t na lang pareho kami ni Trillanes. Pero nagamot ko ang sarili ko (Good thing Trillanes and I are alike. But I have cured myself),” the President said.

At the start of his speech, Duterte talked about his failed marriage with Elizabeth Zimmerman and how he met Avanceña.

Duterte said Zimmerman, the mother of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, vice mayor-elect Sebastian Duterte and incoming Rep. Paolo Duterte, left him and filed an annulment case against him. 

He said he met Avanceña in 1988 when he was mayor of Davao City. She was then the first runner-up of a local beauty pageant. 

“She used to be thin. Now, she’s still thin,” Duterte said, drawing laughter from the audience. 

When Avanceña, who worked in the US for some time, informed Duterte that she was pregnant, he asked her why she was not using birth control pills. 

“She got angry and said ‘Stupid, Why would I use pills? You are the only one who visits me here. You are the only one’,” the President said. 

Duterte said he asked Avanceña to come home after giving birth to their child Veronica. 

“I told her ‘Come home. No guarantees on your title. I could not say it but it’s really a destiny to become First Lady of the Filipino nation,” he said. 

“Pero kung may gustong sumunod, OK man lang sa akin. Wala talaga akong problema (But if someone comes next, it’s fine with me. I don’t have any problem),” Duterte said. 

Avanceña introduced Duterte to the audience before he delivered his speech, describing him as a man who gave up his comfort and convenience to serve his country.