A Facebook friend, Melchor Vergara, posted this following piece yesterday in commemoration of the first anniversary of President Rodrigo Duterte’s amazing win in last year’s national elections. It’s too good not to share here, with only minor editing to conform to this column’s style from me, with Melchor’s permission:
One year ago today, I did not vote for Rodrigo Duterte to be the next president. I cast my one vote for the woman I believed should be given one last chance to exercise the office stolen from her in 1992, Miriam Defensor Santiago.
But it wasn’t meant to be. All throughout election day, exit polls conducted by the Yellow, anti-Duterte television networks indicated a win by the foul-mouthed mayor of Davao. And not long after the unofficial counting started that same night, it became clear that he would virtually run away with the victory, garnering an official tally of 16 million-plus votes, despite the use of the same math Mar Roxas employed in counting the “Yolanda” casualties.
My choice for vice president suffered the same fate as my presidential candidate did, being robbed of his victory as the nation slept. But that’s another story.
Unlike in 2010 when every fiber of my being despised the presidential election results, I found this one easy to believe and accept. A former prosecutor and mayor for more than two decades who transformed a once crime-riddled backwater into a progressive, world-class city certainly has a lot more to offer than the hypocritical, non-achiever of a president he was replacing, whose only qualifications were having the name of a pseudo-hero, and his mother conveniently dying a few months before the campaign season started.
As the media focused on Duterte’s preparations for his new office, I, like many who did not follow his campaign religiously, got a chance to see and hear more of him. And the more I heard and saw, the more I liked.
It didn’t take long for me to be won over. Duterte’s anti-drug crusade sealed the deal.
As a parent, knowing that my kids can walk the streets without fear of being victimized by drug-crazed criminals or be sucked into the vice themselves, I believed this was more important than the latest GDP numbers or foreign policy initiatives. And after six forgettable years, it is an inspiring sight to see a President think and act like he is working for the welfare of all Filipinos, not just his bunch of kaibigan, kaklase, kamag-anak and a host of brainwashed, idiot rah-rah boys and girls.
Never mind that I didn’t like some of his choices for his Cabinet. It’s his prerogative to appoint whoever he wants.
I was sure I would find a policy of his so unacceptable that I would criticize him as much as I did his incompetent predecessor. But instead the opposite happened, thanks to that legion of doom called the Liberal Party.
Duterte hadn’t even warmed his presidential chair when the evil designs of the Yellow cult began to surface, strengthening my new-found conviction that this man must be protected and defended, not because of who he is but what he represents —the votes of, as those knowledgeable now say, a more likely 21-million Filipinos, even if I wasn’t one of them; his power and authority are of, for and by us, the people. Any illegal and unjust attempt to remove him from the presidency, I decided, is subverting the people’s will.
The Yellow scum of society became more brazen in their actions to demonize Duterte and remove him from office. Having failed miserably on their own, they now enlist foreign entities calling themselves experts to help them in their evil designs.
I said: They must not be allowed to succeed and again dictate the course of our country’s history, like they did in 1986 and 2010.
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I do not regret not voting for Duterte last year. That fact only makes me appreciate him more, seeing how he gives equal attention and concern for his supporters and those he knows did not vote for him.
He is the president of all, and he works for all of us, at a pace and manner many men half his age would find punishing. The Yellow horde can deny it ‘til hell freezes over, but since he took office, many positive changes have been seen and felt by the people, first among them is the way basic services are delivered.
Just look at how the government, through the DSWD, ably coped with the numerous calamities, natural and man-made, that have occurred since July last year, without relying on foreign aid like Leni Robredo wants us to. And we once again have a president who is respected among his peers especially in this part of the world.
His opinion on issues even being sought out by world leaders, as evidenced by recent events. It’s no wonder that even with big media helping the Yellows in destabilizing his government, Duterte enjoys very high trust and satisfaction ratings across all sectors of society.
Change has come, and for more changes to occur, Duterte must be able to complete the mandate given to him. For our country’s sake, we need to support and defend the presidency, not because we are fans of Rodrigo Duterte, but because he symbolizes that we are a sovereign nation with a functioning democracy.
He is the president, our president. We owe it to the future generations of Filipinos that there is another peaceful transfer of power on June 30, 2022.
And who knows, maybe we’ll see Bongbong Marcos raise his right hand to take the presidential oath at noon of that same day.
