Duterte, the journalists, women and Church

Even before he shall have assumed office as the 16th head of state and head of government on June 30, proclaimed President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has already succeeded earning the ire of three very formidable power blocks, namely: the members of the fourth estate, the media people; the women sector; and of course, the Roman Catholic Church. He stands firm that he is not going to apologize to anyone and everyone.

Well, there might be no need to say "Sorry." But a lot of success can be achieved with humility.

With a mandate given by more than 16 million Filipinos, the mayor of Davao City, who used to be a reluctant candidate, and now one of the most popular presidents that our country has ever had(his current level of acceptance being comparable only to the popularity and adulation by the people of Presidents Ramon Magsaysay in the 50s and of Corazon C Aquino in the 80s), may be unnecessarily wasted  by some off-the-cuff comments and some harsh and provocative comments, even if they are spoken with neither malice nor bad faith. We have always been pro-Duterte before, during and after the elections, and we still are. But we hasten to offer an unsolicited advice: "Hinay-hinay lang."

First of all, there is no point antagonizing the journalists. The pen is still mightier than the sword. No matter how popular a president is, the cost of antagonizing the media folks is greater than can ever be imagined. The power of Rizal's Noli and Fili started the downfall of the 377-year Spanish colonization. The impact of the pen of the then Free Press, Malaya and Inquirer writers brought about the downfall of the 20-year Marcos dictatorship. And so, presidential spokesperson Sal Panelo (incidentally, my fellow Law professor at UE and CEU) should gently remind Mayor Digong to be quite nice with the print and broadcast people.

Second, there is no point either to make enemies out of women. As Shakespeare would tell us: "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." Mayor Digong is really a nice man. He just has a streak of a Donald Trump in him. But that is what he is, playful, always kidding around, but there is never any malice.Those who know him would tell us that he really likes women. In fact,he adored his mother, Manang Soling, he dotes on her daughter Mayor Sarah, and makes women feel being valued, although in rather rough or spontaneously coarse ways. But that is what he really is. We get what we see, no refined pretensions, nor nicey, nicey adornment of his ways.

Lastly, the more dangerous institution to fight is the Church. Bishops and priests indeed are not perfect. But they have powers, and a big following.They are sinners, too, clad in white, with many skeletons in their closets. But no one has the right to judge them. The only thing church leaders should guard against is to be outspoken in criticizing the government, much so, the president. The Church and the State need not collide. They are serving the same people. The Church has no right to judge the State. The State does not have to antagonize the Church. They should forge a live-and-let-live "modus vivendi." What matters most is the greatest good for the greatest number of whoever they serve.