Conspicuous by his absence

The Dutertes of Davao were very conspicuous during the second State of the Nation Address of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. last Monday before Congress sitting in joint session. Vice President Sara by the golden attire she wore that had fashion hacks scrambling to find a name for. And the father, former president Rodrigo, for his absence.

I know not a thing about fashion so I will not comment on Inday Sara's moment except to say that the almost imperceptible smile she wore on her face like an accessory to her dress seemed to suggest that she knew exactly what was going on inside people's minds and was loving it. If she was toying with our sanity, she nailed it all the way.

As to the father, aahhh, it is another thing, although I would not be surprised if he wasn't toying with everyone as well. As a former president he was supposed to be there. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was there, both in that capacity and as a sitting member of the House of Representatives. Joseph Estrada was also there.

Records in Congress reportedly showed the elder Duterte had actually confirmed his attendance. Asked why he eventually did not show up, Senator Bong Go, his forever aide, said the old man was tired and was resting at home in Davao. Fair enough, except that he had just come from a surprise visit to China that had everyone all sewn up in speculation.

The world only knew of the visit when the Chinese government published a photo of him having a one-on-one with President Xi Jinping. That both men have developed a rather warm relationship is not by itself surprising, or even worrying. In fact it is a positive thing given the chilly relations Manila currently has with Beijing.

But because Rodrigo left without any warning and came back without saying anything, everybody in this country that had to know everything went nuts. "Maka-buang sa mga maritess ang mauwahi sa balita." Like headless chicken the gossip-mongers were bumping into everyone and everything. Even Marcos Jr. was clueless.

To a certain extent, the Rodrigo caper sort of somewhat undercut the SONA. If you ask me, it became some sort of an elephant in the room, underscored, whether by inadvertence or design, by what Inday Sara wore, on her body and on her lips. And all the while, I truly believe that Rodrigo was indeed resting, taking a nap under his "mosquitero."

All things considered, there was really nothing of consequence to the Rodrigo China visit beyond what I think it was, a teaser and a breather. Even China knows when things are getting real hot. The childish North Korean leader is throwing a tantrum again with two US nuclear subs just next door to the south. If so much as a glass falls by accident...

For all its posturings, China is not prepared to go to war at this time. Its economy is on the brink of overtaking the US. Why risk all that? But things can go horribly wrong when you at least expect it. So in a very circuitous way of signaling a stand down, old man Rodrigo who attracts attention just by eating "monggos og kan-on" proves very useful.

And I think the gambit is paying off. All fingers have eased on the trigger. Everyone is speculating. And all it cost Xi was a college building named and dedicated to Rodrigo's mother Soledad Roa at the Fujian Normal University. That ensured the old man would come. The meeting with Xi was just a photo-op to take the runners to a pit-stop.