Duterte: A leader in his own right

Professor Tan Sri Dato' Dzulkifli Abdul Razak
My View - The Sun Daily
February 22, 2017

ON the flight to the Philippines last week, the conversation drifted to that of the president. The passenger beside me had nothing but praise for the newly elected leader. What was more interesting was that he was an expatriate working in a multinational IT company in the Philippines.

Normally, expatriates have very little good things to say about the leaders of developing countries that they work in as compared to their countries of origin. But not this time, surprisingly. More so when the international media seems to knock down his leadership style.

On arrival in Manila, it did not take long to understand the expat's sentiments. Those who met us at the airport had similar views about the "hugely popular" president whom they are very proud of. This was more apparent over the next two days at the Summit on Bangsamoro Economic Development held back to back with the International Conference on Islamic Economics and Finance which I was privileged to speak at.

The keynote address of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, though relatively short, encapsulated who he was, his passion and commitment. Quick in identifying "the economic problems bedevilling the Moro society", Duterte zeroed-in: "This problem is systemic, and I recognised the culprit, the weakness in the unitary system of government ... How can we move forward if all the money is forwarded to the National Treasurer?" he asked while urging a move to a federal form of government.

The address ended by acknowledging that Malaysia "has gone up to the threshold of the First World. The Philippines is going there too, and it will come during my term."

Being the first president from Mindanao and himself a Moro, with a Moro ancestry on his mother's side, Duterte's determination to make a difference can no longer be questioned. For example he declared: "Let us establish an independent nation in Mindanao and we will call it the Republic of Mindanao" — the Land of Promise.

The local newspapers over the next three days provided more insights on Duterte, fondly referred to as DU30. On day one (Feb 17) in Manila, The Inquirer under the headline: "People power and political will" quoted him in his first State of the Nation Address on July 25, 2016: "The plane passes over that (Laguna) Lake every time I go to Davao. I see there is no more space for small fishermen." Earlier this year the Laguna Lake Development Authority instructed illegal fish pen and fish cage owners to demolish their structures making good DU30's promise that "poor fisherman will have priority in its entitlement" citing the Fisheries Code of the Republic.

On day two, The Manila Bulletin, front-paged another headline, "Duterte: I'll resign if Trillanes proves I amassed P2 B illegally." This was in response to a challenge by a senator for the president to release his bank account details alleging undeclared wealth "that reached P2.4 billion from 2006 to 2015." The cut and dry push back is followed by a bold challenge "to go to court and file the proper case against him."

On day three, as I was leaving Manila, a Church-State clash seemed to loom over the "war on drugs". Dubbed a "show of force" involving the Catholic Church and the president, who had resolved to put to a test given his pointed promise: "When I said I'll stop criminality, I'll stop criminality. If I have to kill you, I will kill you. Personally, I had to act decisively. Let me just say there were things which I had to do because I had to do them." After all, to him this is a "war" where you kill or be killed.

Duterte had somewhat anticipated the move when he successfully enlisted military support in what he called the "two main threats" – the "complex" problem of illegal drugs and terrorism.

The Philippine Military Alumni Inc reportedly issued a manifesto supporting DU30's "initiatives, advocacies and decisions in the war against corruption – and criminality in general, most particularly against illegal drugs, heinous crimes and terrorism, (and) for his pursuit for lasting peace."

In other words, DU30 is not about to turn the other cheek. He has vowed to "save" his country where others have failed to do so. In his own words: "In the past, our government verged on failure because those who were in a position to help deliberately made wrong decisions which favoured only themselves."

Succinctly, for the 16 million Filipinos who made him president barely a year ago have put their utmost trust in someone who does not mince his words when it comes to ensuring that the people of the Philippines live in dignity and pride as the world looks on in awe. Duterte's quote: "My friendship ends where the interest of my country begins," sums this up rather convincingly.