Duterte

For security reasons, it was not until the end of the Pacquiao-Matthysse fight that the people inside the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur knew exactly where Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte was. They just knew that he was inside somewhere, having announced his intention to watch the fight just prior to leaving for Malaysia for a meeting with his counterpart, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

The Filipinos, who made up probably 80 percent of the audience, would break up every now and then into chants of "Duterte, Duterte." And that is how I realized just how popular the Philippine president is with OFWs. For while there had been planeloads of Filipinos who came for the fight from such places as Manila, Cebu, Davao, and General Santos, most were Malaysia-based.

And they were thrilled to be watching the fight with Duterte. Granted the chants could have been instigated by Duterte loyalists. But there was no doubt, judging by the decibels expended, that the chant was picked up by everybody else, including the Malaysian in the crowd who probably just wanted to join the fun.

It was not until Dyan Castillejo, interviewing Pacquiao inside the ring after his victory, that the location of Duterte was publicly revealed. Pointing up to the stands, Castillejo asked Pacquiao if he would like to greet and thank the president. Pacquiao's words were drowned out as the crowd broke into another "Duterte, Duterte" chant, only this time much louder.

Duterte was up there in a plain white t-shirt, with Mahathir right beside him in his usual gray suit. They were surrounded, of course, by men in black, Malaysian security personnel. The security aside, it was truly something to see two heads of state out there, mingling with the crowd.

One thing is pretty clear. While the critics of Duterte appear to be getting louder back in the Philippines, the tough-talking leader continues to be hugely popular among overseas Filipinos. And this matters tremendously in face of the criticisms. OFWs play an influential role in the mindset of their families back home. As breadwinners, what they say often goes.

This is probably why also that Duterte's numbers in the surveys continue to be high. As the surveys cut across all tiers of Philippine society, it has to be presumed that a good number of respondents must belong to OFW families. And with more than 10 million OFWs scattered across the globe, their family members back home must be roughly six times as many.

These OFW families make up one of the crucial bases of support for Duterte. And the reason OFWs love Duterte is because they feel he is keeping their families back home safe and secure. Nothing can be more endearing than an assurance that your family is in good hands. After all, it is for family that these OFWs left in the first place.