Spoiler alert

Himself a veteran politician, President Rodrigo Duterte is very well cognizant of the fact that the ranks of his party, the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) only swelled right after he won in the May elections last year. Thus, as far as President Duterte is concerned, he repeatedly tells in his public speeches he does not have much political baggage when he run and won as the presidential standard bearer of the PDP-Laban.

His fellow Mindanao leaders, namely, Senate president Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III and House Speaker, Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez made sure of total control of the PDP-Laban extended all the way to both chambers of the 17th Congress. Pimentel is the incumbent PDP-Laban president while Alvarez is the party secretary-general.

So when President Duterte assumed office at Malacanang Palace, his PDP-Laban became the new ruling party under their so-called “super” coalition in both chambers of the 17th Congress.

The previous Congress was lorded over by the erstwhile ruling majority from the Liberal Party (LP) during the six years administration of President Benigno “Noy” Aquino III. The LP lost many of its members after the former Davao City Mayor beat LP’s anointed presidential candidate, former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas II.

Roxas’ LP runningmate, on the other hand, former Camarines Sur Congresswoman Leni Robredo won the vice presidential race. VP Robredo is currently LP’s chairperson, she being the highest elected official of the party. Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan currently sits as LP president while Roxas remains as LP president-on-leave. P-Noy, on the other hand, is LP chairman emeritus.

With the fleeting nature of party loyalty perhaps at the back of his mind, President Duterte publicly teased Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali during his visit in the latter’s home province last Wednesday during the People’s Day at Socorro town. Umali used to be with one of the LP stalwarts during the Aquino administration but was among those who switched to PDP-Laban right after the May 2016 elections.

Before constituents of ex-LP and now PDP-Laban congressman, President Duterte teased Umali: “Eh kung mahulog eh ‘di si Robredo na. Naloko na. Back to happiness si Congressman Umali kay Liberal,” the President remarked to the laughter of his audience. Roughly translated: “If I fall down, the Vice President takes over. Then, Congressman Umali goes back to happiness and be LP again.”

The presidential joke refers to the succession rule under our country’s 1987 Constitution in which the Vice President automatically takes over in case of incapacity, death, or impeachment of the President.

Incidentally, both President Duterte and VP Robredo are facing impeachment cases. A week after Congress adjourned for their month-long Lenten break, Magdalo party list representative Gary Alejano filed an impeachment complaint against President Duterte’s alleged involvement in extra-judicial killings since he was a Mayor. Last Friday, Alejano filed a supplemental complaint to impeach President Duterte for alleged betrayal of public trust over the West Philippine Sea issue.

Acting on public statements of Speaker Alvarez he would support initiatives to impeach also VP Robredo, a known Marcos loyalist Oliver Lozano initiated the filing of impeachment complaint against the Veep. Lozano though must get a member of the Lower House to endorse it because he is a private complainant.

At the outset, Speaker Alvarez doused cold waters over Alejano’s prospects of getting the required number of at least 100 Congressmen to support the impeachment complaint against President Duterte. What could be more certain, Speaker Alvarez pointed out, is the fact there are more than enough House “super coalition” members to endorse an impeachment complaint against the Vice President.

Despite public appeals of President Duterte to stop impeachment initiatives against VP Robredo, the Speaker invoked the independence of Congress to perform their job under the country’s republican setting.

For now, both impeachment cases against President Duterte and against VP Robredo were merely deemed submitted to the House secretary-general who, under House rules, must transmit them to the Speaker. When Congress resumes sessions on May 2, the Speaker has ten days to decide whether or not the impeachment complaints comply with requirements to qualify their inclusion in the official agenda of the House.

While dismissing again alleged ouster plots against him, President Duterte pointed out, he and VP Robredo were elected by the people to serve them for full-term of six years. He appealed to the opposition ranks to give him and VP Robredo the chance to show what their respective leadership could deliver to the Filipino people. Citing both of them are just nine months into office, the President said the impeachment complaints against him and the VP were premature and only heightens destabilization plots against his administration.

Speaking before us during our weekly breakfast forum at Kapihan sa Manila Bay last Wednesday, Sen.Pangilinan took the occasion to vehemently deny LP is behind and part of alleged destabilization plots against President Duterte. The Duterte administration, Pangilinan lamented, is in the habit of accusing its critics of involvement in destabilization plots. When, in fact, the Senator said, all its troubles were self-inflicted.  

“But we are in a democracy and in a democracy, contrary opinions are respected because there is no perfect government and there is no such thing as perfect president,” Pangilinan asserted.

With only five Senators and around 33 Congressmen who have stayed on at LP, Pangilinan noted, they could not possibly fit the description of a destabilization force to reckon with. Pangilinan joined the delegation of VP Robredo and several other LP leaders who flew to South Africa to attend this week a forum on democracy.

So the family lunch or dinner invitation of President Duterte to VP Robredo will have to wait until she returns to Manila. The family that gets together stays together. That’s the wish of the Filipino nation as one big family.

Despite his bombasts, it is a welcome gesture of President Duterte in trying to reach out with his estranged VP. Don’t spoil it.