Duterte's appeal to his friends to stop their thievery went unheeded?

Like his predecessor Joseph Estrada, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte's appeal to his friends during his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) probably went unheeded.

Yesterday, a big-time recruitment agency owner charged Labor secretary Slyvestre Bello III of corruption for allegedly demanding 10 million pesos just to lift her suspension order. see this story here: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1014552/dole-chief-denies-receiving-money-phone-from-recruitment-agency-boss

I remember Mr. Duterte vowing to kick the butt out of any Cabinet member with just a "whiff" of suspicion that he or she is involved in graft and corruption.

Bello has been receiving serious graft and corruption allegations from various people and these people will not sacrifice their lives, their futures and their businesses if they don't have any evidence against Bello.

Malacanan is now conducting an investigation on graft allegations against Bello. One of those who went out against Bello claims that Bello and his group within the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is employing tactics to scare legitimate recruitment agencies in exchange for gifts ranging from expensive watches to actual cold cash.

Bello had since denied the charges flatly, even saying that those charges are illegal and he will not do such things. If you read the affidavits of the complainants however, there are sufficient grounds there to pin Bello down for corruption.

Bello has a pending estafa case before the Department of Justice (DOJ) which was used as basis for exempting him from the qualified list of nominees for the Office of the Ombudsman post.

Mr. Duterte was elected on the belief that he is a strong man. The people reposed their trust on him believing that he has the balls to fight off corrupt men and women in the service.

I understand that there is a process involved in firing high government officials and it happened with Mike Sueno, even the former Secretary of Justice (SOJ).

It would be very interesting if the body tasked by Mr. Duterte himself discover something irregular  and Mr. Duterte stands by his ground for and on behalf of his dorm mate, Slyvestre Bello. That could be used against Mr. Duterte and probably affect his anti-corruption drive.

This could spark fresh revolts against Mr. Duterte. Remember what happened to Erap? Erap also mouthed threats of "walang kaibigan, walang kamag-anak" while the people saw photos of him fraternizing with shady characters and those officials accused of major corrupt practices. That led to his eventual ouster and incarceration.

In fairness to President Duterte, as many as seven times he told Bello to run for the Senate and many times did Bello belied the truth behind the president's words. Sources say maybe the President is privy to intel reports which documented alleged illicit practices of Bello's group.

Frankly, Bello's presence is affecting Mr. Duterte's political image and reputation.  An honest friend would sacrifice his own political career for the sake of his friend who is directly accountable to the people.

Even at the State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Duterte reiterated this call to his friends and members of his cabinet and the bureaucracy.

For Secretary Bello--who uses his friendship with a broadcaster to air his blanket denials, I think it is time to throw in the towel. The very fact that he is now embroiled in this controversy is one sufficient reason to just retire from government service. How would one like Bello manage his department when the public is slowly losing their trust and confidence on him? He will surely be an ineffective leader by this time.