LIKE in the movies, we know when death comes…the body is limp as it loses strength and vitality. And then the light is snuffed along with the last gasp and it’s over.
It is very much like in an election campaign. Less than a month to go, and we are witnessing how the Goliath among the five presidential aspirants, Mar Roxas, loses steam and vim. His rallies are staged in covered courts to hide the few number of people who are herded to lend an audience to him. The color is monochromatic which suggests of “hakot”. The massive machinery is in dishevel and quickly crumbling like a sand castle. His principal sponsor, President Aquino, is not of any help. He has become a veritable sinker in the campaign of his anointed and his alternate candidate Poe.
With Duterte enjoying a commanding lead, the three- Poe, Binay and Roxas have connived to put down the genuine Probinsyano. The man of the masses.
In ganging up on Mayor Duterte the triumvirate, who represent the controlling and influential elite, have connived to destroy Duterte. They have conjured all the black propaganda against the man who turned Davao City from what used to be “the NPA killing field” and haven of criminal syndicates to what Asia Week dubbed as the most livable place in the Philippines. Today, the City is rated by international rating firm as the 5th most peaceful city in the world.
Before Duterte was pushed into running for President, his three political adversaries bestowed the Davao City mayor with all the accolades for turning the city not only for the orderliness and peace but also as the country’s prime investment destination.
It is therefore funny and ridiculous for Binay to charge Duterte as “Berdugo ng Bayan” or for Roxas to describe the mayor as a threat to democracy. Poe, has come out of her demure demeanor and had joined the fray and tutored Duterte how to deal with drug syndicates.
But none of these tirades could diminish the Mayor’s popularity. He was mobbed by over 50,000 in upscale Alabang. Similar thing happened in Cainta. People lined up the streets on his route to the rally sites. They braved the scorching sun. In Cainta, Rizal a friend described their “harrowing” experience. “We waited for almost ten hours to see Mayor Duterte but we cannot even manage to get a clear view of him when he finally arrived. Naku Jun, isang daang libo yata ang pumunta. I do not know as to how many days will I will be able to recover my normal self. Bogbog pa rin pakiramdam ko. But looking back it’s all worth it”. Her only regret is that her wish to have a picture taken with the mayor was not realized.
The presidential race is nearing the finish line. Binay, Roxas and Poe who were at each other’s neck before the reluctant candidate from the south rose to stardom will not stop at anything to bring him down. They are drooling with envy at how the masses and the well-heeled society from all over the country including those from their own bailiwicks are looking up to Duterte.