EDITORIAL - Duterte has charm, Alvarez arrogance

There is a whale of a difference between President Duterte and Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. Even in their not-so-fine moments, as when they curse in public or boast about their women, the difference is very evident. With Duterte there is an innate charm, even tenderness, in the old man that makes it far easier to sweep aside any rough edges in his character.

Not so with Alvarez. Alvarez is arrogant and devoid of any charm. Even when he is right, he might as well be wrong, because nobody seems to want to be on his side. Duterte loves to boast, often in the form of threats that can take people aback, but which they later learn to live with as they start getting used to hyperbole sprung from "probinsyano" speak.

Besides, it is easy to take a Duterte threat with a grain of salt because he is, after all, the president. And not just any president but one who can capture the imagination of Filipinos like no other president did. Alvarez, on the other hand, is just the speaker. Not to denigrate the position, but a speaker is merely just a speaker, chosen by congressmen from among themselves. A president is the president, elected by the people at large.

Duterte went from mayor to president because he caught the imagination of the nation. Not even the notoriety of the things attributed to him could stop the deluge of votes that swept him into office. It might even be that it was because of this notoriety that he actually won. It is extremely doubtful, though, if Alvarez can ever capture the imagination of the nation in a positive way to become president.

And the reason he can never be president is because the mental picture he gives the nation each time he rants is that of a very dangerous man. He is not the type you want to cross. More importantly, he is not the type with the willingness and the temperance to hear out others, qualities that a real leader that is fit to be president possesses.

Duterte has been angry in public many times. And while it is but natural to get uncomfortable when he goes at it, you just do not get the goose bumps that you get each time you hear Alvarez make threats when mad at something. Alvarez has a volatile temper that does not do his person, his leadership, and more importantly, the branch of government he leads, any good.