As the saying goes what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. Recent popularity surveys reveal that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte remains popular among Filipinos despite his critics’ best efforts to sabotage his government.
Duterte got an “excellent“ net satisfaction rating of +72 in the last three months of 2019, according to emailed results of the pollster’s nationwide survey of 1,200 from December 13 to 16. His rating rose 7 points from the quarter prior, and beat his previous record of +68 set in June last year.
This is a testament to the severely degraded political capital of the Opposition which, amazingly, are now a virtual coalition of sidelined rabble rousers that include the rabid bloc of partisans loyal to the Aquino-Cojuangco clan (the Yellowtards), the communists and their terrorist arm the New People’s Army (NPA), the chi chi community of exclusive private school students under the spell of the Roman Catholic Church, and no less than Big Corporate Media itself.
The most recent Opposition setback is the withdrawal of the case against Duterte filed before the International Criminal Court (ICC) by lawyer Jude Sabio. The case brought forth charges against Duterte for “murder in a bloody anti-drugs crackdown”. Reuters report that Sabio “will no longer pursue the case”. Most important of all, Sabio reportedly pointed out that the Philippine Opposition had used the ICC as a “tool for propaganda” further confirming the dishonesty in how Duterte’s critics conduct themselves.
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Duterte has thus far proven to be a true anti-fragile political force — one that not only survives but thrives in the face of adversity. Renowned intellectual and risk management guru Nassim Nicholas Taleb has long espoused the concept of the “antifragile” – people and systems that “gain from disorder”. He goes further to define the concept, saying that “Antifragility is beyond resilience or robustness. The resilient resists shocks and stays the same; the antifragile gets better.” An example of an antifragile system is our immune system. The more our immune systems are exposed to pathogens (viruses and bacteria that cause diseases), the stronger it becomes.
This is what makes Duterte impervious to the traditional political mudslinging of Philippine election campaigns and the potshots taken by today’s diminished Opposition. Being himself muddied enough by his own track record of unapologetic in-your-face misogyny, xenophobic drumbeating, contempt for due process, and the all-around buffoonery in the way he conducts himself (all of which he’s packaged into his campaign platform), any further mud slinged at him by rivals and critics merely adds to the mystique of his character. It’s like how in the movie The Empire Strikes Back, Princess Leia tells Han Solo about the times he actually comes across as charming… “Occasionally, maybe… when you aren’t acting like a scoundrel,” on which Han Solo quizzically reflects, “Scoundrel? … Scoundrel?” Then with a smile confirms to the Princess, “I like the sound of that.”
As to Duterte’s high profile critics — the likes of Antonio Trillanes, Leila De Lima, Leni Robredo, Maria Ressa, and Jim Paredes among others — one’s only gotta ask: Where are they now? We will likely find them gnashing their teeth in the shadow of a persistently popular leader they had failed to topple dishonestly.
benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.
Pres. Duterte is a seasoned politician…From day one, when he was sworn in as President. The drug dealer and nymphomaniac Leila de Lima, with the Liberal Party, and the Aquino rabid dog Trililing Tillanes, tried to Impeach him, on the charge of Extra Judicial killings (EJK)…
Leila de Lima is now serving jail, on the conviction of drug dealing…while Trililing Trillanes lost his “political relevance” to the Filipino people. They went to the European Union; they went to ask favors to U.S senators, and the U.S./C.I.A., to remove Duterte…they did the SODOMA Project, with Trililing Trillanes, as “Stella” – the prime instigator of the coup d’ etat…nothing worked…
Duterte has many political adversaries. They are the : oligarchs; the Roman Catholic Church; foreign meddlers; the Aquino Cojuangco political axis; the Liberal Party; the CPP/NPA pseudo communists; the leftist front organizations; the political clown: Lugaw Robredo; etc…
They went further to the International Criminal Court( ICC), to file a case of “crime against humanity”, with Atty. Sabio as their legal counsel. The attorney, turned against them….Lugaw Robredo, the fake Vice President and the political clown, is doing a lot of press con, and photo opportunities; to show people, she is a “good replacement of Duterte”…nothing worked, and nothing is working…
The opposition, has done everything to demonize Duterte; to Smear him in the worst possible way…nothing is working.
The reason is : the Aquino EDSA fake news that became fake history is no longer relevant in this Age of Information Technology. People has already awakened. The Aquino propaganda media and network are defeated by the Social Media Warriors…so, abangan ang susunod na kabanata !
I’m sure the opposition is counting down the days till the President finishes his term in 2022.
I can only hope there would be a strong successor who can continue what the President is doing now. If history is any indication, what successors mainly do is push their own agenda and tear down whatever their predecessors did, never mind the benefits.
Which is precisely why the opposition will not change their tactics just like benign0 or Ilda recommends.
Once he’s gone, they believe there is no way their tired tactics will fail again.
The president could bring back faith in the government if he shows he’s serious about giving back power to the people. That somebody who was chosen is taking responsibility for his people and not submitting to a perceived or self proclaimed higher authority.