Knock knock, who’s President?
Today marks a historical day in Philippine History. This is what everyone is saying and talking about anyway. This is true though. We have a new President!
Also, we now have a President and a Vice President who both originated from the province, both didn’t have plans on running for these important positions (or so they say..) and both work to help the less fortunate people in this country, needless to say, both are lawyers.
This is what I think and what I feel as a voter, as a woman and as a Filipino. Like a wheel, everything will just spin the same way no matter who the driver is. However, there is light and hope because we live in a different time, an era of technology and of globalization.
Duterte is no doubt an incredible man. He is a miracle worker, imagine, from a Davao City Mayor, he was catapulted to the most powerful position in the Philippines, in just one year. He didn’t even have to run for a congressional seat, a senatorial seat and a vice presidential seat, he wasn’t aiming for presidency to begin with. Based on that alone, he’s amazing.
That miracle was brought forth by playing to the massess’ cries for help. Duterte has achieved and done so much for Davao and everyone saw that without even setting foot in the area, using that as his stage, he began to sing to the people and the media. Sing promises if the people in return, promised to vote for him.
He sang promises of justifying workers’ problems with taxes and fixing the the majority workers’ dilemma on being contractual employees. He made promises with talking to China about the Philippine Sea dispute and in his own way, whatever that may be, settle it. He promised to make amends with rebel groups too. What I am personally most curious about and looking forward to witness done is his promise to eradicate illegal drugs, crime and corruption in the Philippines.. In six months.
Even though I’m a dreamer myself, I’m a bit skeptical on this one. We are a developing country, if the US or major powerful countries from Europe, like Britain and England, have yet to be successful in this endeavor, what motivated him to make such a heavy promise?
Was it the shock value? So people would talk about him more?
In this sense, people may call my skepticism as cynical or a realist’s lost faith, but I can’t fathom how he can accomplish such feat that’s been around since before I was born, since before he was born. I would love to see him accomplish everything and would help to the extent of what I can, but Filipinos have been promised less than what he promised and we all know how it all turned out. Some of those presidents were the very poster of corruption themselves.
Digong is super charismatic. I am a first time voter and I studied the candidates carefully before voting. I haven’t any interest in politics and I think the Philippine Government has yet to live up to its name. Although when I heard Duterte talk about himself, his promises and seeing the way he presented himself and carried himself had me thinking, ‘Wow, this Gramps is so cool!’, since he’s like the age of most grandpa’s and my grandpa when he died, the man is a beaming example of strength.
Also, for a hard, iron-fisted man, he’s also forgiving. Imagine on his inauguration day he had impeached (for corruption) President Erap Estrada sitting alongside him, and the Marcos Family close to him. I wonder if he’d pardon Gloria Macapagal Arroyo too. If that’s so, Amazing! What a big-hearted man.
Despite his kind heart to those who erred, he has this attitude of talking, making promises but it’s like he’s making a joke without a punchline. I was waiting for him to expound, to explain in layman’s term how he would go about making his promises a reality but it’s like grade school and high school all over again. Wherein you just spout out just about anything to win like your words are worth gold when in truth words are not worth what they are in gold. I was so excited to hear his method, like a student waiting for a professor to provide the procedure after he just gave the flatout answer, but he didn’t provide that procedure.
Though seemingly skeptical, I still trust him. I will trust a man who gives his word on National TV, in front of the whole nation. To be able to attain the most powerful position in the country without going through the uual ‘procedure’, straight from his respectable Mayoral Seat, President D knows what he’s doing. Maybe he has some answers us mere mortals, without the experience he’s gained in his 70 years, would ever come up with. My trust is with him and will wait for him to make Philippines a better and happy country in the the six months he’s promised.
I respect him, he quoted F. Sionil Jose for pete’s sake! Though seriously, I respect him because at his age, he is still fighting, at his age he is pursuing what he believes in and that alone is the very thing that I aspire, for myself and for the whole world, to be doing what you love even if you’re 70 or 80 years old.
Today was also the inauguration of the Vice President. Leni Robredo’s speech was immaculate. It had me tearing up like a softy. The lady is amazing but again, you can’t judge someone just by that. Both the president and the vice president are underdogs and they both won. However it is unfortunate that the president obviously dislikes the vice president. Why? He invited Marcos to his inauguration but not Leni? As the biggest man in the Philippines he should be the better man, the gentleman and the bigger man. Lead by example. Even if something didn’t turn out how you liked it to be, work with it, work with what you have. It’s what every good parent would tell their children.
However, I understand his mentality, older people, people who were born before 1950’s, have this hard unwavering conviction and mentality, because they saw and experienced harder times than most who were born later, they worked harder for a more fruitful generation. I don’t know what his problem with Leni is though. Wasn’t he alive during the Marcos Regime and witnessed the effects of that era on the people? He had the son of that man in his inauguration but not the woman working for the poorer Filipinos. I’m a 90’s kid but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what’s right from wrong. What’s fishy and sketchy from what’s straight and true.
I admire Digong for his charisma and perseverance, he delivered an amazing speech today too, but this display towards his VP sparked an image of a spiteful little boy. From Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings, from a bunch of superhero movies, Digong’s actions towards Leni is not very gentlemanly.
Watching the whole election and inauguration is like witnessing the real life GAME OF THRONES!
All things said, they are both great leaders, they are both hard workers. President Duterte is hard and strong, it would be a picture of perfection to have Vice President Robredo beside him, anchoring him, the right mix of Yin and Yang, Hard and Soft, Brutal and Compassionate. Amazing right?!
He can oversee the peace and defense of our country while she can take care of the softer, poorer side of the problem.
Dear Mr. President, please be the bigger man and be a great leader. A great leader unites his members and like what Daenarys Targaryen did in the Game of Thrones, a great leader makes use of every single capable leader under his reign.
Mabuhay 16th President! Mabuhay Philippines!