Category: rodrigo duterte

Trust ratings, painful truths

I totally agree with Ronnie Holmes of Pulse Asia that the high trust ratings of Digong and Sara as of May 6-9, just before the elections, had a lot to do with the timing of Sara’s impeachment (Feb 7) by the Lower House followed by Digong’s arrest and rendition to ICC jurisdiction (March 11). https://www.gmanetwork.com/

I-i-impeach din pala, why did Congress not strike while Sara’s trust ratings were down, soon after the Nov 2024 hitman threats on BBM atbp., no-joke no-joke? Sa kaka-delay — first the Lower House, then the Senate: why was the Senate so loath to proceed forthwith, all of three months before May 12 — nakabawi tuloy ang VP, thanks to a very smart comms team that has had her strutting on social media platforms, hitting at the Marcos admin non-stop for the poverty high prices and corruption  (never mind that she has nothing to offer by way of alternative economic policies) and then, post-arrest, doubling down with the “kidnap” of Tatay Digong, tugging at heartstrings with the sob story of advanced age, ill health, 27 pills a day, at kung anuano pa.

Sa madaling salita, had the impeachment trial proceeded, forthwith, back in maybe Dec 2024, it would could conceivably have ended with a conviction by Feb or Mar 2025.  And if the DOJ had also put off Digong’s arrest till May 13, then hindi nadagdagan nang katakut-takot ang mga hinaing ng mga Duterte, and maybe there would have been no consolidating the DDS base, tsismis pa lang kasi. At the very least, the political dynamics would have been quite different come election day. And BBM would not be in the spot that he is in now.

And then again, I could be completely off the mark, and it’s all just a matter of charisma pala, as many analysts and observers say. I tend to think though that the old man Digong’s high trust ratings only indicate that one of two Filipinos think, feel, he should face trial here, not in The Hague, just because kawawa naman ang matanda.

Besides, say pa ng DDS vlogger lawyers sa You Tube, okay naman ang judicial system natin, Digong would get a fair deal. Yeah, right. Imagine the wheeling and dealing. But that’s another story.

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Rodrigo Duterte: A Fascist Original by Walden Bello Feb 2017
Charisma and Rodrigo Duterte by Randy David Nov 2021
‘The Punisher’: Rodrigo Duterte’s violent reign… by Rebecca Ratcliffe Jun 2022
Rodrigo Duterte’s Popularity … Covid-19 Pandemic by Kasuya and Miwa Nov 2023
Rodrigo Duterte: The provocative but popular Philippine strongman Mar 2025

Gary Granada on Duterte & ICC

Speaking as an anarchist, who advocates for a society based on voluntary cooperation, without hierarchical government, Gary Granada, musician, composer, lyricist, teacher, philosopher, and public intellectual, takes the discourse higher, explains why we are all complicit and now paying the price.

Duterte, ICC and Me
(An Anarchist View)

Imagine for a moment that it is the entire Philippine State being indicted before the international community. On what charge? For failure to fulfill its international obligation to uphold the rights of its citizens. Worse, for systematically carrying out the crimes themselves.

Of course you can’t haul an entire state before the international court, so you do the next best thing – you bring the embodiment of that state. That means the Government during the time the violations happened. But you also can’t fit an entire government machinery in a jet plane. So you send the embodiment of that Government – which is the President.

But it’s Duterte’s undoing, why the entire nation-state? Because a State is accountable for acts done by its agents in their official capacity. Which means that if Duterte is convicted, it formalizes for one thing the liability of the Philippine State to pay damages to the families of EJK victims under his watch.

[ They might want to consider suing the government, or legislators might want to draft a bill “moto propio” ]

Are you hallucinating? Not at all, in fact we’ve already done the exact same thing in recent past. Government started paying the human rights victims during Martial Law in 2013, remember? Marcos was long dead by then, no one to jail anymore. In short, just like this time, a lot of murderers got away with murder. But not the entire State. Think of it as a “continuing crime” – thru time. So who paid the price ultimately?

We, us all – pro-Marcos, anti-Marcos, fence sitters, clueless. The fund, the offices, the overhead costs – all Government property and resources. Instead of hospitals, schools, science and technology, irrigation, housing – the money was spent to pay for the crimes perpetrated by the State.

I think it’s a useful narrative to help instruct young Filipinos moving forward – to the end that they better make sure it never happens again, lest pay the price again. Never mind global humiliation.

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Some Discussion References for Students:
https://hrvvmc.gov.ph/irr-ra_10368/
https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/en/customary-ihl/v1/rule149
https://www.britannica.com/…/state-sovereign-political…

Imee loyalists, Imee utang-na-loob

LESLIE BOCOBO. In spite of every disappointing thing Sen. Imee Marcos has said and done to hurt true-blue Marcos loyalists (myself included), I have decided to include her still in my very short list of personal choices for the Senate. … [Beyond “utang na loob”] … Imee will always be a Marcos and, politically speaking, may be the future conduit between her family and the Dutertes. … You are free to castigate me on this, and believe me when I say I am torn … https://www.facebook.com/lesliebocobo/posts/

I imagine that many loyalists also see, and understand, Imee’s defense of former president Rodrigo Duterte as pagtanaw ng utang na loob na hindi matatawaran. After all, Digong did not just happily help along the Marcoses’ relentless campaign to polish up the dictator’s tainted image, even pushed the takedown of ABS-CBN and everything identified with yellow history, he also dared in 2016 to bury the OG Marcos in Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) with full military honors — a favor Imelda had long been seeking from every president since FVR, to no avail.

It was FVR who in 1993 allowed the remains to return home from Hawaii direct to Ilocos Norte for immediate burial with military honors fit for an army major, the highest rank Marcos obtained in WW2 according to US military records. Imelda balked, insisted that as former president and commander-in-chief he deserved a state burial in Manila’s Heroes Cemetery. When FVR stood his ground, Imelda installed the dead one in a glass vault for display in a Batac museum — a tourist attraction — while waiting for more opportune times.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/

She tried again in 1998. Ran for president, then withdrew and endorsed Joseph Estrada, who, upon his election, immediately ordered the burial of Marcos in LNMB. Cement  was already being poured on the foundation of the tomb site weeks before Estrada’s June 30 swearing-in. Pero ipinatigil ni FVR, pangulo pa siya noon, dahil galit na galit ang anti-Marcos groups, war veterans, at Kaliwa. Atras si Imelda. Inamin ni Erap na nagkamali siya, akala niya burying Marcos in the LNMB  would  also bury the “bitter differences” between the pro- and  anti-Marcos. Estrada urged Imelda to bury the remains of her husband in Batac na lang. “End to Marcos’ burial dispute” New Straits Times July 13 1998 

Imelda gave the project a rest during GMA’s time . In PNoy’s time she turned to Congress for help. In  2011, a few days before the 25th EDSA anniversary, Marcos ally Rep. Salvador Escudero authored a resolution calling for the LNMB burial that gathered close to 200 signatures, a clear House majority. In the Senate, Bongbong Marcos released a statement insisting that his father deserved no less than a state burial. http://legacy.senate.gov.ph/press_release/

PNoy asked VP Jejomar Binay to decide the case. After 3 months of research and consultations with civil society groups and other concerned citizens, and taking into account the Escudero resolution and an SWS survey [March 3 – March 7] showing that Filipinos were split right down the middle — 50% in favor, 49% not — and a personal meeting daw with Bongbong and Imee Marcos, Binay came to the conclusion that it was a “partisan” issue and a compromise that might be acceptable to both sides would be to bury Marcos in Ilocos Norte with full military honors.  https://ph.news.yahoo.com/news/binay

But as it turned out, Binay had misread the Marcoses: Imelda was adamant about a state burial in Manila. On the 17th of June 2011, PNoy just said no. “Not during my watch.” https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/

And then came Duterte.

Kampanya pa lang, ipinangako na niya ang LNMB burial for the dictator, about whom he only had good things to say; and the burial would unite the nation daw. It is not clear if it was his way of making ligaw the Marcos loyalist vote or if naligawan na siya ni Imee vis a vis the burial in exchange for the same. But once he had won, Digong was quick to thank her publicly.

“Who supported me in Luzon? … Only Imee Marcos.” https://www.youtube.com/

“Sinong tumulong sa akin? Ilan lang … 4, 5, 6? Wala akong barangay captain. Wala akong congressman. Wala akong pera, si Imee pa nga ang nagbigay, sabi niya inutang daw niya. … Si Imee supported me.” https://www.youtube.com/

On June 30 he took his oath, August 7 he ordered the Marcos burial, August through September eight petitions were filed with the Supreme Court seeking a restraining order. Rallies pro and con, left right and center.

Imee Marcos, daughter of the former dictator and now the governor of Ilocos Norte Province painted Duterte as the natural successor to her father. She also implied that recognizing Marcos as a hero would allow the country to move forward. 

“[The reburial] is an opportunity to erase the hatred, conflicts and discord in our society,” she said at a pro-Marcos rally outside the Supreme Court in October. “The healing presidency of President Duterte will take over and we as one nation will be great again,” CNN reported. https://www.csmonitor.com/

Nov 8 the Supreme Court, voting 9-5-1, dismissed all petitions. Nov 17 Duterte flew to Lima Peru for an APEC summit, Nov 18 the dead one was flown to Manila by Army helicopter and buried in “sneaky” rites, behind shut gates, away from public view. https://www.nationthailand.com/

RACHEL AG REYES. There was a grand hearse. Relatives and guests arrived in a fleet of big cars. The Marcos family was impeccably dressed: Imelda wore a beautiful black terno whose silken folds fluttered elegantly in the breeze. Imee was in immaculate white, and her brother chose a barong his father would have favored. The coffin, draped in the nation’s flag, was carried with great ceremony by military pallbearers and honored with a 21- gun salute. Soldiers in full military regalia dutifully saluted. Priests, just as dutifully, prayed and officiated. There were wreaths and bouquets, one said to be from the President. The ceremony began promptly at noon, as tradition dictated, and ended an hour later. Rows and rows of soldiers and police stood guarding the cemetery’s perimeter and entrances. Clearly,the event was planned and executed with the sort of precision and meticulous coordination that seems so uncharacteristic of us Filipinos. Moreover, somehow, remarkably, it was all accomplished with absolute secrecy. Not a shred of information was leaked. Not a single journalist was alerted. Not a single pesky protester was there to ruin the moment and the photos. The Marcoses even controlled the visuals, selecting only a few images of the event for public consumption. The President was conveniently out of the country. His office claimed ignorance. “We honestly don’t know,” said the doe-eyed spokesperson who stood before an aghast press corps. What an impressive and extraordinary feat.  https://www.manilatimes.net/

That the burial was held in secret tells us that the Marcoses were aware of, even sensitive to, the pulse, the agitation, of the people. In the 2011 SWS survey that asked people if Marcos deserved to be buried in LNMB, of the 50% who approved, only 30% said yes to official honors, 20% said yes to a private burial only — this 20% plus the 49% who said no, not worthy, made for a resounding 69%. https://www.sws.org.ph/

Just the same, post-LNMB saw Imee elected to the Senate in 2018. And then in Nov 2021 — tila nagmamadaling maiakyat si Bongbong sa palasyo — she was able to convince Sara Duterte to UniTeam with BBM because otherwise there was no beating Leni Robredo, and Sara agreed, despite Digong preferring that she run as Senator Bong Go‘s VP.  https://www.philstar.com/headlines/

But as it turned out, outside the kulambo pala si Imee, and the pamamangka sa dalawang partido has proven unsustainable with the impeachment of VP Sara by Congress, the turnover of Digong to ICC, and her lagapak sa surveys.

Bocobo’s reading, that “Imee will always be a Marcos and, politically speaking, may be the future conduit between her family and the Dutertes”, might turn out a pipe dream, unless Imee makes it back to the Senate in May, the Senate acquits VP Sara, and Digong gets to come home alive.

Shifting sands

It was nothing like the euphoria of EDSA ’86 when the dictator Marcos fled the country, but still it was quite a rare high when former president Duterte unexpectedly flew off to The Hague without a fight. A WOW! who-would-have-thought moment that we are all still wrapping our heads around, whether in mixed joy and pity, how dissonant, or intense sorrow and rage, how DDS.

It also couldn’t have happened at a more critical time — it’s election season with Duterte and Marcos campaigning for control of the Senate where VP Sara, the daughter, is up for an impeachment trial, and last week civil society was clamoring for the trial to begin forthwith, before elections.

That’s a lost cause now, it would seem. We’ve already lost another week, the window of possibility grows narrower. And given the Duterte-ICC shock-and-awe political drama that’s got everyone thinking, rethinking, reevaluating (sooo Mercury retrograde), I imagine that the trial will just have to wait until after the May elections, in early June. The incumbent senators, re-electionist and otherwise, will not want to be seen adding to the tribulations of the VP, not while she’s in The Hague attending to Digong’s defense, and not while the DDS are screaming to bring him home, or else.

Or else, what? People power daw. The movie-in-the-mind of DDS peeps starts with street rallies that become so large and nasty and noisy that PBBM would have no choice but to declare martial law, which would then unite the opposition, the DDS greens with the pinks and yellows, left right and center; fast-forward to the ouster of Marcos and the rise of Sara. Parang fairy tale. And it’s not as if, if she became president she could bring her tatay home from ICC. Sa intindi ko, the only time Digong gets to come home is if and when the ICC declares him innocent.

Meanwhile they promise a sweep for Duterte’s senatorial slate, certain that they can count on voter sympathy to seat the entire caboodle in the Senate and guarantee Sara’s acquittal sa impeachment trial.

Voter sympathy. But I can also imagine voters levelling up, listening to both sides, going through now-I-see moments, and making up their own minds. Wishful thinking, I know, but heck all the information and opinions and platforms have to account for something worthwhile, or what’s the point.

And let’s not forget BBM who is very much in control. Here’s a Facebook post by information consultant James Matthew Miraflor on why BBM did it.

Marcos, Jr. follows the footstep of Macapagal-Arroyo – it does not matter how unpopular your regime becomes, as long as you satisfy the established elite. Unfortunately for the Duterte family, it is the same elite they pissed off when they maneuvered Dennis Uy into their circle.

For this elite, #NeverAgain to the Dutertes. This elite will ensure that Sara is impeached and perpetually disqualified, Polong is jailed (probably), and Baste is politically kneecapped. Kitty? All clans have Anastasias, she’ll probably have her own harmless Disney movie. The Dutertes cannot survive this without compromise. Marcos, Jr. and the rest of the Marcos family cannot risk a vindictive political force post-2028.

Hell, the Marcoses might even be willing to engineer charter change to ensure a transition to a federal-parliamentary system, one that will be dominated by corporate-sponsored parties*. Perhaps a semi-Presidential system, with a Tulfo as President and Romualdez as PM? It will be the apotheosis of the Philippine elite: dual power ala Roman consulate, fully liberalized, rules-based, with institutionalized consensus-based gerrymandering.

Alas, a low-intensity democracy that is also the technocrats dream: capitalists govern, economists appoint regulators, and the electorate simply vote party mascots.

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* Nacionalista for Villar, NPC for San Miguel, NUP for Razon, LAKAS-NUCD for Aboitiz, and the LP for the Negros vieux riche; Consunjis, Tans, and Gokongweis might commit to new parties, who knows?

https://www.philstar.com/…/2239719/tycoons-men-marcos-men
https://bilyonaryo.com/…/gokongwei-zobel…/business/