Posted on 05/12/2019 5:36:21 PM PDT by hapnHal
Filipinos vote on Monday in midterm polls that are being seen as a crucial referendum on Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal crackdown on illegal drugs, unorthodox style and contentious embrace of China.
The poll is expected to strengthen his grip on power, opening the way for him to deliver on pledges to restore the death penalty and rewrite the constitution.
Duterte has found international infamy for his foul-mouthed tirades, but remains hugely popular among Filipinos fed up with the country’s dysfunction and elite politicians.
He wants to bring back capital punishment for drug-related crimes as part of a crackdown on narcotics in which thousands of suspects and drug users have already been killed.
His tough-on-crime platform – which also includes lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 12 – was key to his landslide election victory in 2016.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
Tons of stories over here at election time
A sitting mayor’s opponent was WAY ahead in the polls
The opponent was killed about 10 days ago in a drive-by shooting
Duterte offered a 50 million peso (~ $1 million) reward to those who would confess. When the four mayor’s bodyguard assassins stepped forward to claim their reward, their confessions were taken and recorded.
But President Duterte suddenly ‘changed his mind’ and now the mayor is nowhere to be found. hmmm
Wonder if the mayor got a one-way trip on the president’s helicopter to an altitude of about 500 feet?
Hey Oscar,
As I tend not to believe a lot of what comes out in the media can I ask you what is the real truth, if there is any, about this guy. I would rather get it from someone on the ground. Thanks
In glad I don’t live in a dump like that, but if I lived there it sounds like this dude would be the kind of leader I’d support. LOL.
Marcos was 30 years old when he took over. Dutarte, like Trump has one shot. No time to waste.
Psst ... over here
Which guy: the mayor or the President?
I believe that if Presidents Trump and Duterte ever joined forces, they’d conquer the world, should they want to.
After Nov 2016, I was hoping Trump would name Duterte as his Attorney General, and supply him with a huge fleet of fully fueled Hueys
The senators are being elected so could affect his ability to govern.
But most of the local elections are about which family/clan will run the local city and neighborhood offices, and do not have to do with Duterte.
But notice that with Duterte’s award money, they outed the guilty mayor quickly.
When our mayor shot his rival ten years ago (and our nephew was killed in the crossfire), it took years to indict the mayor.
And when he was indicted, he quickly disappeared and couldn't be found for another four years.
Duterte has found international infamy for his foul-mouthed tirades, but remains hugely popular among Filipinos fed up with the country’s dysfunction and elite politicians. He wants to bring back capital punishment for drug-related crimes as part of a crackdown on narcotics in which thousands of suspects and drug users have already been killed.
He’s done the right thing with the drug trade. That part I immensely like. God puts every leader in place for a reason (Daniel Chapter 4).
In your view, is Duterte’s drug war REALLY effective?
The reason I ask is that I’ve heard some comments to the effect that, yes, some users and small time sellers are being “taken out”, but that the big players are being left alone.
True????
That’s about SOP here. I am in Davao City, so I already knew who Duterte was. His daughter is now the mayor, and his son is the vice mayor. They are keeping it in the family. 😁 I hear she got 97% of the vote. My wife had to go to Davao Del Norte, to vote.
I believe most Americans think the rest of the world thinks the way they do. Maybe it would be better if they did, but they don’t. As far as I know, no one has been held accountable for the Maguindanao massacre, or the Mamasapano massacre. If you are looking for a justice system that works, don’t go to the Philippines. It doesn’t exist here.
Yes, Duterte is popular. Many Americans, who have never been here, may not like his tactics, but most Filipinos do. He gets results, and many don’t care how he does it. I don’t believe the big wigs are let off the hook for the drug thing. The former head of the NBI (same as the FBI) was fired from her position, and jailed for drugs, so I wouldn’t say anyone is letting them go.
The way it was explained to me, they have a policy. They go to the drug dealers, and say, find another line of work. That is knock knock talk. If the dealers don’t find something else to do, the next time they knock on their door, it is knock knock, BANG. no explanation required. 😁
That's gotten us in a lot of trouble over the years.
“I believe that if Presidents Trump and Duterte ever joined forces, they’d conquer the world, should they want to.
After Nov 2016, I was hoping Trump would name Duterte as his Attorney General, and supply him with a huge fleet of fully fueled Hueys”
Are we to conclude you like the guy?
The Philippines was a bit less hopeless than was Singapore before Lee Kwan Yew became leader there. Thanks to the foundation laid by Mr. Lee, Singapore tops most of the good rankings in this part of the world. President Duterte exhibits a lot of Mr. Lee’s no-nonsense leadership traits.
Sadly, the Philippines permits but a single 6-yr term for president (Mr. Duterte is halfway through his term). It probably takes a ten year period of time to make meaningful adjustments to any country’s entrenched political and cultural habits. Therefore, Filipino progress or regress will depend on the NEXT president following through on the path blazed by THIS president.
This is painfully similar to the question some of us are asking about our American trajectory: “What happens after Jan. 21, 2025?”
President Trump can get our ship righted at least 80-90 percent of the way in spite of the swamp’s roadblocks. However, just like Moses needed a Joshua, we will need a strong and patriotic successor to Mr. Trump for America to regain FULLY its ‘promised land’ status.
I listened to much of one of his two hour 11 PM speeches and he said it again in English ... If you bring drugs into my country, I will kill you.
Now THAT'S a War on Drugs.
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