Endorsement
It is tempting to believe that being a presidential daughter is the only reason why Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte has all of a sudden become so politically powerful and influential. But that is very unfair to Sara because it does not follow that presidential relation automatically translates to political power and influence of the sort that can shape political outcomes.
This is not to say that presidential relation does not help in a big way. Why, even the driver of the boss holds a certain sway over certain mortals. But let us not lose sight of the fact that Sara is a strong woman with a mind of her own, that while she is a person of her father’s genes, she is in fact a character embarked on a destiny of her own choosing.
And none reflects this more acutely than her recent decision, made during a recent Cebu visit, to “endorse” the two rivals vying for the same Cebu gubernatorial position --Gwen Garcia and Agnes Magpale. Some would say it was a no-decision as two contradicting endorsements are no endorsements at all if they only cancel each other out.
But I think Sara Duterte saw a more important consideration at play in the situation that most people did not immediately see. With some Cebuano blood running in her own veins, Sara knew Cebuanos do not want to be played in some cheap political game, which was how it would have looked had she gone one way or the other.
By saying she was endorsing both Gwen and Agnes to the wisdom of the Cebuano electorate, she was actually endorsing the Cebuanos themselves. Now I do not presume to know Sara more than she does so herself. But I believe that was, to her, the bigger endorsement she could make under the circumstances.
I would even go so far as to suggest that her virtual no-endorsement endorsement had less to do about the politics involved. Sara is practical enough to realize that there is nothing permanent in politics. I suspect, therefore, that more than politics, it was the fact that she was being made to choose between two highly-qualified and successful Cebuano women.
As a woman herself, Sara obviously knew how it would feel to be passed up in favor of another. Not even political betrayal cuts more deeply than for one woman to be publicly humiliated against another. By doing what she did, Sara allowed a difficult situation to become a breeze.
By leaving it up to the Cebuanos themselves, Sara allowed everyone to walk away a winner, with herself not being diminished one bit but instead strengthened by what was clearly a very wise decision. Sara, I think, is a more thinking person than her father. Look at her. She is now a national figure who, by staying local, avoids the national risks national figures face.
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