Bring out the ‘bulingon’

Bencyrus Ellorin

IN his latest State-of-the-Nation Address, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte spilled the “L” word like no other president did. It would be interesting if the English translator translated it “masturbation” of equivalent foreign language for the members of the diplomatic community.

At the onset of this administration, I wrote that the peace process between this administration and the mainstream Philippine left would eventually be a futile exercise. “Maybe, there would be leftist personalities joining the Duterte administration, but not the whole movements. While we are in this flirtation that has captured the arousal of around 40 percent of the electorate, bring out the Kleenex please.” Fastlanes, May 19, 2016, (https://mindanaogoldstardaily.com/bring-out-the-kleenex/)

Or is it bring out the “bulingon” this time?

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There is no doubt, President Duterte is the kind of leader who wants to exercise to the maximum his powers. He did it as mayor of Davao City for 20 years and got away with it. He may as well do it as the president of the republic and get away with it, too.

Why?

The political opposition is decimated, disarrayed, alienated.

The protest movement, too, with credibility issues, diminishing creativity and lack of judiciousness.

Duterte packaged himself as a leftist, a progressive, even if he disdains to hell democratic values like human rights and freedom of expression. Maybe the Philippine left, which has a tattered history of having one of the most vicious purging, killing about a thousand of its comrades in the late 1980 to the 1990s is giving away its stance on human rights as just a front to win over the sentiments of the people. It would seem that those from the left who supported Duterte’s dash to Malacanang were okay with extrajudicial killings in Davao, and when he became president.

In his first Sona, prominent street parliamentarians were disarmed when they were invited to Malacanang. They turned the traditional Sona rally into a rally of support.

This year, after declaring he would no longer talk peace with the armed Philippine left — the Communist Party of the Philippines-National Democratic Front and New People’s Army — President Duterte invaded the stage of the Sona protesters (actually same groups that held a rally of support last year) and directly talked with those who were chanting among others “ibalik ang peace talks.”

In response, the president addressed the protesters directly: “Do not ambush me, do not kill me.” In reference to the recent ambush of members of his security force in North Cotabato along the Bukidnon-Davao highway. He then proceeded to ask for mutual respect, much to the chagrin of the protesters.

This is chilling. Duterte does not seem to distinguish between the armed and legal left. He talks to them as if they belong to a homogenous social movement. With the extrajudicial killings of this administration which was thought okay by an NDF peace process consultant and released political detainees as “OK lang kay mga addict man ang biktima” or something to that effect, the left, whether one is from legal organization or underground organization may be open target of this administration’s renewed call for atrocities.

Now that is the proverbial s**t hitting the fan… bring out the “bulingon” please.

The president has shown his political astuteness, dealing with the opposition and the protest movement like he is just playing with a fidget spinner.

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As the Mindanao Martial Law is extended, there are reports that German peace and relief workers, working for the Marawi crises have been ordered to relocate to Davao City from Cagayan de Oro. This does not make sense as this brings them far away from the center of the conflict. My sources said the decision was based on a security brief provided by as**s calling themselves security consultants while warming their seats in their comfy Makati office.

E-mail: bcy.gellorin@gmail.com