How I discovered President Rody

MANILA, Philippines - Who is Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte? I first heard about him, not from the radio, not from the television, not from any person from Davao, where he had been mayor.

The first time I heard about him was from a taxi driver who gave me three rubber bracelets with the inscription “Duterte.” The driver was campaigning for Duterte. Why? The driver said that the Philippines would improve the way Duterte made Davao improve.

The Davao I had been to a couple of times was already improved with its moderate climate, fresh fruits like durian, marang, tsiko and mango, with its regulated traffic condition, with its well-organized transportation system, with its well-behaved people. I had not heard of any incidents of kidnapping, carnapping, merciless killings and drug trafficking. A happy people seemed to be enjoying all the conveniences of life.

Who is Rodrigo Duterte? Little by little, I was discovering him. Gradually, I was feeling the persona of this man who was the last to enter the presidential bid. Soon the media and the people went agog. Different reactions about the person of Duterte flew from far and wide. Was he the hot-headed, impulsive person that some picture him to be? Was he the criminal chaser, drug addict pursuer, drug lords hunter, corrupt politician’s enemy? All sorts of descriptions filled the earth and sky with comments in the social media.

The blurbs about his running for the highest office of the land were not many, unlike those of his opponents’ and other hopefuls. I think I was getting to know this man they call Digong. Little by little, my mind was already getting various and varied pieces of information about him. Only a few, not even a handful of advertisements about his running could be seen or heard. They came only in trickles.

When the mayor appeared in interviews, he was always soft-spoken. Hardly could one hear him raise his voice. Hardly could one hear or see him blast blatantly. And, if he did a couple of times, he felt sorry and apologetic.

Duterte won by leaps and bounds, and went over his opponents increasingly and incessantly. He was like leapfrogging.

My favorite blurb about Duterte’s candidacy is the one where solemnly he recites, “I am Rodrigo Duterte. I am a Filipino, the Philippines is my country,” and so on. All this to the fun of “I love my own, my native land.” I salute the person who came up with this blurb. He or she must have some spark of genius, of creativity. He or she must have a grasp of Aristotle’s canons on persuasive communication; namely, ethos, logos and pathos. This is the artistic way of persuading people to affect their ideas, beliefs and personality. In the first canon or law, the speaker touches on the wisdom of the audience. In the second law, the speaker calls on the logic of what he or she is talking about. In the third law, the speaker appeals to the emotions of the listeners. What more could we ask for?

This brings me to the first time that I discovered the real Digong when he visited the grave of his parents after all indications pointed to the fact that he was readily winning the presidential race. The gap of the numbers of votes for him and the other candidates was going wider and wider.

There before the tomb of his parents, Duterte cried silently as he was offering his thanks and his victory to his beloved parents. There was no fanfare or gimmick. Only a natural outpouring of his emotions in remembrance and thanksgiving. Was this the man with a heart of steel or stone that people have pictured him to be? Definitely, only a human being acting like a normal human being. The Philippines was going to be in the palms of his hands. The man shown is one whose heart was not of stone or steel. Here is a man with soft heart, soft as the gentle touch of the Davao breeze, calm as the mountain and the seas. That was the second time he cried. I learned that he cried when he passed the bar examinations for law graduates.

Is Duterte a character or a phenomenon? Some definitions in the dictionary give the answers. He is considered as a symbol of good government. A real character indeed. He is phenomenon because he seems to be extraordinary, a value, a gem before he could even be proclaimed president of the Philippines. The people of the world acknowledge this character and phenomenon.

The ambassadors of China and Japan were among the first to see and congratulate him. The US president Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin already greeted and congratulated him. One of the striking features of his administration will be no specified favors to relatives and friends.

People are gradually uniting to help this character and phenomenon move to make this country a better place to live in. This character and phenomenon show promise that he will rule not with empty words, not with iron hand but with due respect to the laws, and with a soft heart showing love for humanity and especially for the underprivileged. Duterte was once described as “have man of issue.” Indeed, this country will hopefully have less strain and stress, with less rocky roads and thorny mountains to trek on. A brighter Philippines, indeed, that will recapture its old title of “Pearl of the Oriental Seas.”

Reports have it that Duterte was not a good student. Nobody has the right to live life in the same way forever. Life is in a constant flux. Life is not always the same. Changes happen at the least expected moment. Juanito was not so good before; but will be much better in the future. For instance, Juanito was a lazy student in his young days. That does not mean that he will be lazy all his life.

S.I. Hayakawa, Stuart Chase, C.K Ogden and I.A. Richards all agree to and the precept of Count Alfred Korzybski, a Polish scientist who opted to settle down in the USA, who in his book Science and Sanity says that nothing remains the same. There is nothing permanent in this world Juanito in 1990 could have been a lazy student. In 1995, he was less lazy and in 2000, he turned into a responsible conscientious person. In fact, he became a board topnotcher in the bar examinations and a prize-winning broadcast journalist.

The people have spoken. This mandate must be respected and given due regard and a chance to blossom.

Not a heart of steel or stone, not a brain that is cold and clogged, but a balance of the pathos, logos and ethos of Aristotle, in persuasive communication.

The new President has the ability to sing a little and dance a little, unlike the professional performers then there is really a balance between the disciplined strict person, such a person looks to the true, the good and the beautiful.  

(Editor’s note: The author is a stage and film actress, playwright, literary critic and professor.)