FILE PHOTO: President Rodrigo Duterte speaks after his arrival, from a visit in Israel and Jordan at Davao International airport in Davao City in southern Philippines, September 8, 2018. Duterte, whose controversial war on drugs has... (Associated Press) 
 
 MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, whose controversial war on drugs has cost thousands of lives, says he used marijuana to keep awake at a recent regional meeting, but later disavowed his assertion as a joke. Duterte made the comment Monday at an awards ceremony where he talked about attending last month's meeting in Singapore of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and how the schedules of such gatherings that run from morning until late at night is grueling. “I use marijuana to keep me awake,” Duterte said in a speech, complaining about the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Singapore last month. Duterte, after his speech, told reporters he had been joking but a human rights activist criticized the attempt at humor.
– President Rodrigo Duterte has waged a controversially bloody war on drug dealers in the Philippines, but that didn't stop the leader from cracking wise Monday about his own use of illicit substances. Per Reuters, Duterte said in a speech that he used marijuana to stay awake at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which he attended in Singapore last month. After the comment caused a stir, Duterte clarified that he was merely kidding. "It was a joke, of course it was a joke, but nobody can stop me from just doing my style," he quoted by a local media network, per the AP. Possession of marijuana is punishable by a long prison sentence and a heavy fine in the Philippines. Philippine police say more than 4,800 suspects have been killed in the drug crackdown that began in July 2016 after Duterte took office. Rights groups have denounced the killings as extrajudicial executions and say the crackdown is unfairly directed at the poor rather than the kingpins in the illicit trade. (Duterte has also waged a war on corrupt public officials.)