Taking off from my article last week, it seems that President-elect Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug platform took on a life of its own as law enforcement agencies—whether through fear for job security, or true-blue support from reawakened morale—intensified efforts in going after drug dealers and their ilk a month ahead of the inauguration of the incoming administration.
Such mobilization makes you think: What has the outgoing administration done against the proliferation of illegal drugs (seriously, what have they done?). Although it is true that the outgoing administration rode on an anti-corruption platform, its path has leaned in favor of their allies while eliminating all those who oppose them. A crusade against drugs, on the other hand, draws clearer battle lines.
Corruption is a serious problem for this country, and so are drugs, criminality, and poverty. While their efforts could be commendable to some extent, the BS Aquino administration was not able to touch the lives of the common Filipino. The same can be said about their claim of economic gains—especially since they have been sitting on the shoulders of the previous administration’s economic policies. Presidents, especially the one going out in a few weeks, have bragged about their contribution to robust GDPs and other economic acronyms they can cook up. While these are well and good, these economic numbers are hardly felt by the masses. Malayo pa rin sa bituka. Thus, one of the reasons why the administration bet lost is because they cannot connect to the common Filipino, in both policy and personal levels.
This is in stark contrast with Digong’s… well, his everything. His personality and policy click with the common Filipino. They click so much that they have each taken a life of their own. Once in a while, I hear one of my constituents tell stories, sometimes of themselves, of people doing the right thing based merely on the fact that “si Digong na president natin.” These stories were of discipline, observance of laws and rules, and patriotic camaraderie. We need more of those stories.
The Duterte administration has the opportunity to become the best President this country ever had. He should take advantage and make good out of the overwhelming mandate given to him last May. Digong can rally Filipinos to his side because he does not promise the biggest of things, at least not yet. He promises Filipinos that the change will be malapit sa bituka: curbing criminality that victimizes everyone, especially the poor. Not the criminality that merely affects the country’s one percent, but society’s evils that literally kills and robs and degrades everyone everyday. The classes who voted for Digong: the BPO employees who go home late at night, PUV drivers experiencing kotong cops, “endo” employees—they are all rooting for Digong because they are fed up with rampant crime on the streets that affect them daily.
If and when Digong succeeds in taming the streets and institutionalizing a strong peace and security system, then the whole country will benefit from it. If and when such peace and order has been reached and maintained, economic gains will follow and flourish. If and when that happens, Digong has the makings of being the best president this country ever had, if he isn’t already. His administration’s first and foremost achievement is winning Filipinos’ hearts and minds.
Digong therefore needs Congress’ full support of his initiatives. Legislation should get closer to the needs of the people, and right now national and personal security cuts across classes more than ever, and ever so close to the need to alleviate poverty. Congress needs to return to basics as the psychologist Abraham Maslow has famously pointed out, and then elevate the discussion to national security and good governance. Congress must have the guts Digong has in order for change to truly come.
