Standing above the rest CEBU DEBATE BARES DUTERTE LEADERSHIP

By Manny Piñol

“Manoy.”

That Cebuano word which means “Street Smart,” “Wise,” and “Experienced,” among others, best describes Rody Duterte in his most convincing performance yet in the two Presidential Debates already staged prior to the May 2016 elections.

Last night, standing before a podium side by side with three other Presidential Candidates, Duterte was a picture of calmness in his rolled up Barong Tagalog contented with blurting out one liners in the early stages of the debate prompting a political analyst to declare that he “lacked substance.”

He allowed the three other debaters – Vice President Jejomar Binay, Senator Grace Poe Llamanzares and former Secretary Manuel Roxas III – to lunge at each other, virtually smashing each other’s face.

Binay attacked Poe for renouncing her Philippine citizenship and becoming an American citizen emphasising the word “abjure” in the oath of allegiance for new American citizens.

Poe hit back by reminding Binay that he had not answered corruption charges against him. She later turned on Roxas saying that when President Aquino kept him out of the Mamasapano operations loop, it was an indication that the President did not trust Roxas.

Roxas lashed back at Poe saying she failed to act on the Coco Levy issue because she was protecting the interests of her benefactor, former Ambassador Eduardo Cojuangco.

He also confronted Binay with the prices of specific items procured by the City Government of Makati for the controversial Ospital ng Makati and the Ombudsman recommendation for the filing of plunder charges against his son, dismissed Makati Mayor Junjun Binay.

Roxas attempted to rile up Duterte by repeating his claims that Davao City has the highest crime rate among the country’s cities to which the Davao City Mayor responded by saying that the “crime” statistics included arrests for violation of Anti-Smoking, Over-Speeding and other local ordinances which the City strictly enforces.

When he attacked, Duterte was like Manny Pacquiao, a seasoned boxer, deliberate with his punches and connecting where it hurt most.

Actually, he threw a probing punch early on in the debate when he confronted Binay with the accusation aired by latter’s camp that Duterte committed a “technical malversation” in the utilisation of the Special Education Fund (SEF).

Duterte dared the Vice President to prove the allegation saying he was willing to withdraw from the race. But he also took that opportunity to confront Binay with corruption charges against him.

Binay must have felt the sting of Duterte’s attack so much so that when the debate came to the part where he was supposed to ask the Davao City Mayor with probing questions, he said he had no question even expressing admiration for his opponent and adding that he and Duterte were both qualified to be President.

Duterte appeared to return the compliment when he said that Binay was more qualified than him only to deliver the coup de grace when he asked the audience: “Maniwala naman pala kayo?”

The Duterte repartee brought the house down.

Duterte was not belligerent when it was his turn to ask a question to Poe but the very simple situational probe on how she would respond if in the middle of the night she would be informed as President of an attack on the country by China obviously rattled her.

The question clearly caught her flat-footed and visibly unprepared. It was not part of her well-studied list of issues given to her by her handlers before the debate.

Poe sounded panicky when she said that she would immediately rise out of bed and call the Secretary of National Defense and the Department of Transportation and Communications which has supervision over the Philippine Coast Guard.

The more appropriate answer would have been to “immediately convene the National Security Council.”

The simple situational question came like a knockout punch. In one stroke, Duterte succeeded in showing to the whole country that the young senator is not prepared yet to lead the nation in these times of crisis.

Duterte, however, reserved his most fatal blow for his former friend, Roxas, when he called the former Interior Secretary as a “pretentious leader” who could not handle stress.

Then, Duterte hammered the last nail on the coffin of Roxas’ presidential ambitions when he declared: “You can never be President.”

Coming out of the verbal jousts unscathed and the least attacked, Duterte proceeded to put the icing on the cake by delivering a valedictory statement on leadership.

Telling his political opponents that he could learn a lesson or two from their platform of governance and proposed programs, Duterte told everybody that what the country needs is a leader who has the courage to face the dangers, even offer his life, and who could unite the nation.

Duterte made a promise to the Filipino people: “I can provide leadership.”

At the end of the debate, he shook the hands of Binay and Roxas and bussed Poe, just as if nothing happened.

“Manoy gyud.”

(Photo credit: Duterte photo with caption on leadership downloaded from the Facebook page of a Duterte supporter.)