Tough on drugs and crime, he has earned the moniker “The Punisher” and “Dirty Harry” of Davao City where he has served as mayor for 22 years. In the run-up to the May 9 elections, he managed to curse Pope Francis, crack a joke about a rape victim, and pepper his speeches with invectives, and still win the presidential race by a landslide with 16.6 million votes.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the 71-year-old tough father of four, is now an even tougher father of a nation of more than 100 million people.
His initial pronouncements before his inauguration at Malacañang today gave Filipinos a glimpse of his seven-term iron-fist rule in Davao City.
Duterte started with relatively easier to accept policy statements: implementing a nationwide curfew for unaccompanied minors and prohibiting the sale of alcohol by 2 a.m. Smoking would be banned in enclosed public areas nationwide.
And videoke? Duterte said noise pollution should be abated as it is a nuisance. In his hometown, in particular, videoke in residential areas is allowed only up to 10 p.m. But Filipinos outside Davao City can still sing “My Way” to their hearts content as the tough-talking President has yet to come up with a clear policy as to when these sessions should end.
The pronouncements became heavier, though, as the country’s 16th President laid out his plans against drugs, criminality, and corruption. Or in his own words, it will be a “bloody” presidency.
“Just imagine if I kill 10 people a day for 6 years…If I couldn’t convince you to stop, I’ll have you killed. If you’re into drugs, I’m very sorry. I’ll have to apologize to your family because you’ll surely get killed,” Duterte said.
“I believe in retribution. Why? You should pay. When you kill someone, when you rape someone, you should die,” he added.
The President, a lawyer, even pledged at one point to kill 100,000 criminals and dump so many in Manila Bay that the “fish will grow fat” from feeding on them.
Even elected officials, soldiers and policemen will not be spared, he said. Without naming names, he has warned three police generals suspected of being involved in drugs to resign or risk public humiliation. He also announced that mayors coddling drug pushers will not be allowed to choose their own chief of police.
Duterte has also vowed to get tough on corrupt public officials, promising to designate 12 phone numbers that can be used to access him 24 hours for complaints from the public.
His Finance chief, Carlos Dominguez, said the national government will also follow the “Davao model” where business permits are issued promptly to reduce the opportunities for money to illegally exchange hands.
Despite painting a picture of a strongman who is ready to kill for the good of the country, Duterte insisted that he has no dictatorial tendencies.
His guiding principle for governance, he said, was inspired by what his late father, a former provincial governor of Davao, taught him: “The government is for the helpless, the hopeless and the defenseless.”
“Sometimes I can be harsh, but I was never a despot to anybody,” he said.
