The pros and cons of a Duterte presidency

He has not yet been proclaimed as a president-elect, but presumptive President-elect Davao City Mayor Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte has vowed to order the police to arrest the parents of children found wandering on the streets beyond 10PM curfew when he takes over the presidency. Wow! This Duterte is the first President I know who will impose upon parents to be responsible for their children.

Duterte pointed out that children who are caught during the curfew hours wouldn't be arrested, but placed in the custody of government agencies that take care of abandoned children. This is something new to ever happen in this country and I dare say that it is about time that parents should know where their children are before the curfew begins! It seems to me that Mayor Duterte's fight against illegal drugs is starting on the right foot, where parents should take responsibility of their children.

Remember the old slogan, "It's 10:00PM, do you know where your children are?" Then later, it was changed to "It's 10:00PM, children do you know where your parents are?" At this point, we call upon the various Church ministries to help educate poor parents on the rights of a child and the responsibilities of parents. All that the poor parents need to do is listen to the teachers as listening is the beginning of understanding. Kudos to Mayor Duterte for bringing this nation to where it never went before!

If at all there is a negative from Mayor Duterte, it is his plan for a coalition government where he is reserving the cabinet slots for the Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Labor and Employment, and Department of Social Welfare and Development to members of the Communist Party of the Philippines. But for now, I will put my trust in Mayor Duterte that this move would make the CPP sign a peace agreement with his government. Abangan!

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The May 9 election saw the return of Tomas Osmeña as mayor-elect of Cebu City, a victory of the Liberal Party's Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan here in Cebu City. It also saw the re-election of Rep. Raul del Mar for the North District of Cebu City and Rep. Rodrigo "Bebot" Abellanosa for the South District.

But just when we thought that things were going great for the Liberal Party in Cebu City, then came that news report that the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas is pushing for the enforcement of the perpetual dismissal from government service because of the order by the Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales against Bebot Abellanosa who was found guilty of conflict of interest after his school, the Asian College of Technology International Education Foundation, Inc. (ACTIEF), received the bulk of scholarship funds from the City of Cebu in the year 2010 when Abellanosa was Cebu City Councilor.

So the million-peso question is, whether the Office of the Ombudsman would enforce its ruling against Abellanosa? Apparently, last February, Deputy Ombudsman Paul Elmer Clemente wrote Comelec Chairman Andy Bautista about this case and the complainant against Abellanosa, Philip Baguiran also petitioned the Comelec to enforce the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman, but the Comelec Chairman did not act on this petition. But for the suspension of Cebu City Mike Rama, the Comelec was quick to approve his suspension. Again, this is selective justice of the Daang Matuwid!

If this petition is acted upon, the Comelec would be forced to proclaim the candidate with the second highest votes, which I believe would fall into former Cebu City Councilor Gerry Carillo. Abellanosa insist that his recent election giving him a fresh mandate will keep the clutches of the Ombudsman away from him. Perhaps he was thinking about the Aguinaldo doctrine, which in my book cannot be used in cases of conflict of interest. If Mayor Duterte won the presidency, it is largely due to the fact that people are fed up with the Daang Matuwid where erring LP members are exempted from prosecution, while their political opponents are punished!

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Last Sunday afternoon, I bumped into my good friend, Toots Jimenez, Jr. whom I learned is the PR of the recently opened Vikings Restaurant in SM City, so he invited my family for a Sunday Buffet dinner, and it was really a "take no prisoners" buffet of great food, ranging from a complete Japanese cuisine, to American steaks, lamb chops, Greek and Italian dishes, Chinese and Thai cuisine, yes including a Cebu lechon and a great array of juices and their coffee and their dessert are just too heavenly! At P888 for dinner for adults, it is truly the best buffet that money can buy! There is only one way to dine when you eat in Vikings, the Philippines Largest Buffet Restaurant is to come very, very, very hungry!

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