2017: A challenging year for Duterte

Having been in office for less than a year, President Rodrigo Duterte may be facing quite a number of challenges this year. The peso continues to decline, slipping to a 10-year low of 50.39 to the dollar last Friday – with Bloomberg describing the currency as “Asia’s ugly duckling of the year.”

While other Asian currencies like the South Korean won and Taiwan dollar were also hit badly as expectations of a US Fed interest rate hike increased, critics attribute the drop to the growing unease of investors over alleged extrajudicial killings and human rights issues. The Liberal Party – or the “yellows,” as Duterte supporters call them, are getting more vocal, having found a rallying cause in Senator de Lima who was detained over drug charges. The LP had accused the Duterte administration of “political persecution” and “vendetta” against De Lima.

In an 80-page report, international group Human Rights Watch accused the president of encouraging the killing of suspects in the war against illegal drugs. The report also slammed the police for “planting” evidence such as guns, ammunitions and drug packets to justify the raids and in some cases, the killing of suspects.

All this, plus the murder of Korean national Jee Ick-joo allegedly by rogue cops as well as the war on drugs – with reports claiming that more than 7,000 have been killed – is taking its toll, with tension getting heightened as seen in the video that went viral showing the confrontation between former musician Jim Paredes and members of the Duterte Youth group.

The proposed death penalty bill – approved on second reading by Congress – is also fueling division. But what is also apparent is the anger even among those who support the proposal because of the removal of rape among the offenses punishable by death. Even President Duterte is asking why Congress took out rape which is considered as one of the most heinous crimes. Many Filipinos also slammed the removal of treason and plunder, saying this is a self-serving move on the part of Congressmen who are perceived to be the most likely “plunderers” since they have access to millions of pesos for “development” projects.

Mining is beginning to be a problematic issue with industry players getting ready to engage in a legal battle due to accusations that closure orders especially on mineral production sharing agreements were made without due process and in violation of valid contracts. Obviously, developments on this front could affect billions of pesos on potential investments from foreign investors, many of whom point to an “unstable regulatory regime” as a total turn-off.

Staunch supporters of the president remain unfazed, however, saying that his followers remain solid behind him as expected to be shown in the survey that will soon be released wherein the president still gets a high approval rating.  Recent developments have also gained him more followers, for instance from the grateful two million SSS pensioners, many of whom already received the additional P1,000 benefit the other day.

According to the SSS, the agency will continue to find a solution to make the fund viable. It can be recalled that former president Noynoy Aquino vetoed the bill proposing a P2,000 increase in the SSS pension – drawing frustration and anger from seniors who say the money is not even enough to cover medication for their numerous ailments.    

There is still a large number of Filipinos who admire the president for showing strong resolve in the fight against corruption in government – pointing to the sacking of Bureau of Immigration officials who were implicated in the P50-million bribery scandal and the recent removal of the National Irrigation Administration head, a close friend of the president, who was implicated with graft. It’s a clear signal that President Rody is serious about anti-corruption.

Despite accusations from human rights groups, many ordinary Filipinos like taxi drivers, waiters and call center employees believe the president’s war against drugs should be continued to make streets safer from drug-crazed criminals.  They are all grateful for this. Informal surveys also show that majority believe the allegations against Senator De Lima mainly  “because of her relationship with her former bodyguard-driver that she lied about.”

They also expressed doubts about the claims of retired Davao policeman Arturo Lascañas and his “journal” – which had aroused incredulity even among writers for the almost flawless and literary rendition – that supposedly details his role in the so-called Davao Death Squad that he supposedly started.

Duterte supporters say this is part of the “yellow ouster plot” which had been completely denied by Noynoy Aquino and Vice President Leni Robredo. The fact of the matter is, one would need the military to successfully mount a coup. There are however intelligence reports that an assassination plot against the president is being mounted by offshore big-time drug lords. Reports also show that there are certain groups out to destabilize the Duterte administration with bombings, kidnappings and “planted killings.”

Our highly placed source tells us the United States is definitely out of the picture as far as these “plots” are concerned. As a matter of fact, they are providing vital information to Philippine intelligence officials about these so-called plots. US-Philippines relations are now back to “good” following the Trump administration’s policy of non-interference with countries that have major illegal drug problems.

Our friend in Malacañang told me the president is expected to turn things around by June when the one-year ban on appointing losing candidates to his Cabinet lapses. We are also told that he now listens more to good advice from people with no agenda but only the good of the country in mind.

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