The hard work begins… THE BATTLE IS HARD; THE ODDS DAUNTING

By Manny Piñol

Now that Davao City Mayor Rody Duterte has heeded the call for him to lead the country, people who support him must be prepared to do the hard work.

The odds are formidable.

Duterte does not have the money to wage a campaign as intense as say the Liberal Party, whose members are occupying key positions in government and have direct access to funds.

This is the reality in Philippine politics.

If a candidate belongs to the party in power, like the Liberal Party, government facilities and resources could be used in the campaign in the guise of delivering services to the people.

Look at how the campaign strategists of Mar Roxas are riding on the 4Ps, the national dole-out program which gives cash subsidies to the poor and even the distribution of relief goods to victims of calamity.

The 4Ps, by the way, which was copied from similar programs in Brazil and Mexico, was started by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Duterte has not prepared himself for the Presidency unlike Vice President Jejomar Binay who coveted it since the first day he became the second highest official of the country.

He also does not have the blessing of carrying a family name many movie goers and the masa are familiar with like Grace Poe.

Duterte is a rural politician who built his reputation on what he has done in the city of Davao over the last 23 years turning it from a Killing Fields of communist assassins to become one of the world’s safest cities to live in.

Also, while Duterte’s party, PDP Laban, is a respectable political party which has produced a President and several senators, it does not have the machinery and the financial resources to ensure that the network of campaign leaders go deep down to the barangay level.

This is where Duterte’s millions of individual supporters could come in.

There is a group which has been organised to undertake the grassroots organization – the Friends of Rody Duterte or FoRD.

Headed by former congresswoman and Immigration Commissioner Andrea “Didi” Domingo, FoRD aims to organise Duterte’s ragtag army of supporters into one cohesive group where each member is given a defined role to undertake.

So, to those who have been sending me messages asking how they could help in Duterte’s campaign, my advice is join the FoRD and be a card-bearing member.

You could contact the FoRD Secretariat at 0917-690-1222 or send an email through friendsofrodyduterte@gmail.com.

The campaign is not going to be easy but if people really want Change in this country, each one has to do his share.