Duterte skips Bonifacio rites due to Mindanao ‘insurgency’

President Duterte skipped the ceremonies of Andres Bonifacio's 155th birth anniversary in Caloocan City on Friday so he could immediately fly to Mindanao to address the problem of insurgency there.

According to Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo, the President designated Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea as his representative.

"ES will attend instead of PRRD. He has to fly to Mindanao to attend to the problem of insurgency in Mindanao," Panelo said in a text message.

The President was set to lead the wreath-laying ceremony at the Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan City.

Duterte's decision to skip the Bonifacio Day rites came following reports of the arrest of former Bayan Muna representative Satur Ocampo for alleged trafficking of children in Davao Del Norte Wednesday night.

Aside from Ocampo, ACT Teacher’s party-list Representative France Castro, along with 74 others, including 12 teachers and 29 students of lumad schools, four pastors and an administrator of the Salugpungan community learning center were also arrested.

Those arrested were allegedly transporting 12 minors in five vans when they were stopped at a military checkpoint in the municipality of Talaingod in Davao del Norte at around 9 p.m.

Malacañang, however, could not confirm if Duterte's sudden plan to go to Mindanao was related to the arrest of Ocampo and Castro.

In his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last year, Duterte slammed communists for allegedly teaching students to rebel against the government, causing him to threaten to bomb lumad schools.

The President later clarified that he would not kill the children and only wants to spare them from perdition caused by the Left.

Duterte also said that some lumad schools are operating to produce a new generation of haters who will go against the government. (with a report from Minka Tiangco)