In a 2-minute 45-second video viewed by more than 744,000 Facebook users and shared 28,407 times as of 9:58 p.m. Saturday, March 19, by CinEmotion Digital Films of the Araw ng Dabaw grand rally of the PDP-Laban tandem Davao City Mayor Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte and Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, the closing frames of a little girl shouting, "Lolo Digong!" repeatedly puts a light note to the highly emotion scenes.
Who is this girl? Journalist <>Edwin G. Espejo who has been following Duterte's campaign sorties has this story.
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MY FIRST image of her was an innocent capture of a crowd that was still swelling more than three hours after the grand rally of presidential candidate and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte began at around 3 p.m. last Wednesday, March 16.
Marina Charina "Ynah" Gementiza, 4 years old, was brought to the rally by her aunt Niña wearing a sando (sleeveless shirt) emblazoned with "DU30."
Her aunt made sure she gets the vantage view of her Lolo Digong (Grandpa Digong) and positioned themselves smack at the center of the first row of supporters at the railings that separated the stage and the crowd.
The night wore on, the crowd got bigger.
By the time Duterte bowed to end the night, it was way past 9 p.m.
As the crowd began to rush to the stage to have their "selfie" session with their hometown bet, I heard a voice from behind me.
It was Ynah shouting -- "Lolo Digooooong!"
I pulled my camera and began taking pictures of her.
(When I checked my SD card later, I realized I took a total of 82 frames of her.)
As I turned away my attention and trained my cameras on stage, I continued to hear her voice.
I told friends maybe we should bring her up stage.
Then I reviewed my frames of her and saw a shot that has dejection written all over her face as her cries got drowned by the loudspeakers.
It was already 9:01 p.m. and she apparently had grown weary her cute little voice, although heard by many around her, will never be heard by the man in green polo shirt on stage who was still posing for selfies with supporters.
She was still crying out her call – “Lolo Digoooong!” – close to 30 minutes after I first heard the cherubic voice.
Finally, I lifted her over the steel barrier and carried her on stage and got her near the mayor.
She was chubby and she was heavy, I thought to myself. Her aunt’s arms must still be aching carrying her on her arms and shoulders.
When Mayor Duterte saw the child he asked, “Kay kinsa ning bata (Who’s child is this)?”
I told the mayor she was brought by supporters from Bucana. The mayor gamely posed for several shots before I took her back to her aunt.
Later, when we were headed back to our hotel, I saw her aunt post a picture of her and the mayor from previous photo session.
I thought I owe it to the child and must give her printouts of my shots for staying out and waiting for her Lolo Digong for more than six hours.
I began to make some "friend requests" and send messages to people who posted previous photos of Ynah on the comment thread of my pictures of her on Facebook.
It led me to her mother Chariza Gementiza, 26, who says she works for her aunt Ruth Gementiza, a councilor in Barangay 76-A (Bucana), one of the largest barangays of Davao City.
Abandoned by her father who she has not seen since birth, Ynah calls Mayor Duterte "lolo."
I asked Chariza why, she said for want of reason to explain why people call Duterte mayor, they just described the presidential candidate as her lolo.
That name has since stuck with Ynah.
Now let’s wait how Ynah would react when she gets hold of the prints of her and her Lolo Digong. (Edwin G. Espejo)