Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte says he 'cured' himself of being gay

The Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte. Photo / AP

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has claimed he was once gay but "cured" himself of homosexuality.

According to Newsweek, Mr Duterte made the bizarre comments on a trip to Japan where he mocked political opponent Senator Antonio Trillanes IV by saying his movements show he is homosexual.

He said someone else had asked him about the senator's sexuality.

"I said, 'Are you sure?' He said 'Ask any gay man and see that moving, they say that's gay,'" Duterte said. "Well, well, Trillanes and I are similar, but I got myself treated."

He said when he met his now ex-wife Elizabeth Zimmerman he told himself "this is it. I became a man again".

He subsequently added: "Duterte is gay. So I am gay, I don't care if I'm gay or not."

However, he also kissed five women on stage while in Tokyo, in front of his longtime partner Honeylet Avancena, further confusing matters.

Duterte, who is a hardliner who had ordered drug dealers to be killed, has flip flopped on same-sex marriage.

Before he was elected president in 2016 he promised to introduce gay marriage to the Catholic country but later switched his position to preferring gay "unions".

"Same-sex marriage is good. Everyone deserves to be happy," Mr Duterte told his country's popular talk show Vice Ganda back in 2015.

It comes after his controversial remarks in January about gay bishops.

"Only I can say it, bishops are sons of b*tches, damn you. It's true, most of them are gay," Mr Duterte said. "They should come out in the open, cancel the celibacy and allow them to have boyfriends."

"These bishops of yours, kill them. They are useless fools. All they do is criticise," he said.