AT First it was about the chutzpah that he could stream expletives to articulate dismay over erring and inefficient government services, the Left, and the super powers of the world. He could have been Dr. Banner turned Hulk who scorned at the god, Loki and called him puny. But then the expletives never ceased. Speech upon speech, presser upon presser everything was showered with vitriol that I found myself often squirming wherever I was watching or listening to Digong. Eventually, I found myself asking my brother to keep the little persons in the family from watching TV news even when I insisted a long time ago that these little persons should be made aware of what’s going on in the society and to discuss it thereafter.
Then during a trip, my companion and I were a bit irritated how often we heard the driver and his assistant frequently cursed fast lane huggers and erring pedestrians. When we eventually called their attention, the driver apologized and quipped: Murag si Digong, sir. Sige’g balikas. My companion who barely understood Bisaya had to ask me for translation and when I did, it dawned upon us how the president indeed has normalized lewd language and it was frustrating (on my part) and infuriating for my companion.
Since becoming the president the foul mouth of Digong has not abated and has probably gone worse. The worst was when he chided the military to shoot female NPAs in the genitalia during a speech last February 7.
"Tell the soldiers, 'There's a new order coming from Mayor. We won't kill you. We will just shoot your vagina so that…if there are no vagina, it would be useless.'
A journalist has also asked me if Digong is a porn addict since his language has become so vulgar and can only be probably explained by severe porn addiction. I had and still have no answer to that assessment.
Over the weekend, Archbishop Socrates Villegas has expressed shame over Catholics who find lewdness funny and how foul language finds adulation during a national forum and how “persons are genitalized rather than respected.”
Digong has popularized crass language so much that other public servants have followed suit. Take the case of Andanar who has used the Bisaya word i**t when he expressed his opinion about the EU. Lately, it has been Representative Pantaleon Alvarez who has been crass in language and deed. Remember how he dressed down Lance Gokongwei like he was talking to an idiot? Or how he claimed being a lumad so he can claim ‘duway’ by having a wife and a girlfriend?
However if association with Digong has emboldened Panty, it took another Duterte to severely defang him. Sara recently labeled him an ‘asshole in the Congress’ when he spread rumors that Sara was out to oppose her president father when she coalesced with young leaders in a new political party. There could have been other nouns other than asshole like ‘rectum dweller’ but it would mean pretty much the same and would not be in keeping with the style that Digong has normalized gutterspeak.
I remember getting harshly scolded when my mother heard me say ‘shit’ for the first time when I was in high school. I would probably do the same with the little persons in the family. However, the job to clean out the language would be tougher now if you have a president who rolls it out on an almost daily basis.