The Gutsiness of Duterte Sets Him Apart from the Rest of the SEAn Leaders...he is a standout
Posted on Friday, 9 September 2016
THE GUTSINESS OF DUTERTE SETS HIM APART
FROM THE REST OF SEAn LEADERS...HE IS A STANDOUT
By Apolinario Villalobos
Let us just talk about leadership quality
based on the strength of impact that it impresses on others and definitely, our
own president, Rodrigo Duterte has IT. Nobody among the SEAn leaders has made
such an impressive feat in less than six month after assuming his office, not
even Singapore’s whose own mark made a deep impression only after several years
of attempt, but which at the end proved successful, making the comparably small
nation an unquestionable model for disciplined metamorphosis into progress.
Duterte is a no-nonsense leader, and whose
steely personality is made more tough by his bluntness. He is not a hypocrite
which is a very important trait that leaders should have, so that people around
him and those with whom he deals with shall IMMEDIATELY know what he FEELS and
THINKS about issues, instead of virtually running around the bush.
Only avowed detractors perceive him as evil
because of his honest ways. Evil, because nasty words have become practically emotional
punctuations of his language just like the “callejeros” who, happy or angry can
easily mutter “putang ina”. How about comparing him with a president who always
attends religious service every Sunday, maintains friends from the high
society, eats French foods, wears signature apparel and cologne, drives luxury
cars, earned doctorates from reputable universities here and abroad…AND NEVER
EVER UTTERED EVEN A SINGLE “BULLSHIT”, BUT IS ACTUALLY DOWNRIGHT CORRUPT!?!?
If Duterte could be bad based on the
hypocritical ethical standard, and the corrupt president may appear clean
unless proven in court as corrupt….which of them has a better image in the eyes
of the people and God? The honest though cussing Duterte? …or the hypocrite
corrupt who puts on a deceitful religious and clean countenance!
During the 2016 ASEAN conference that Duterte
attended in Laos, the dignitaries were unanimous in showing their admiration. Upon
his arrival, other leaders and dignitaries practically vied with each other in
getting his attention for a selfie opportunity that virtually broke diplomatic
protocol. The Japanese minister mentioned him at the start of his speech. Prior
to the conference, curiosity made Obama call Duterte “colorful”. During an opportunity, Duterte courageously
showed photos of the American atrocities in Mindanao which for me is an affront
challenge to Obama who was even jolted by the historic evidences….reasons for
the alienation of the Moros from the democratic system of the Philippines that
the Americans planted. Had he not been outright honest, the world whose eyes
were focused on the ASEAN conference would have not known the reason why our
country is such in a dire state of discord.
And, most importantly, the Indonesian
president was very vocal about his desire to copy what Duterte is doing to
obliterate the drug menace in the Philippines. All of those are strong
manifestations that contradict what detractors are sowing about the supposedly
negative effect of his “bad image” due to his cussing and what his campaign
against illegal drugs could give to the country such as absolute infamy!
Duterte’s request about the issue on
“extra-judicial” killings was not respected, and of all people, by fellow
Filipinos who by virtue of the string that attaches them to their white-skinned
employer have practically made them lost their identity….as they thought they
are Americans, too. All that Duterte has been asking is that this issue be not
taken up during the ASEAN conference, which makes such question no longer
necessarily asked during the press conference at the Davao airport. He is not
dumb as not to know that it could make him flare up, if questioned, especially,
by other leaders, much more Obama.
The biased and mocking editorial “warnings”
about his being confronted by Obama on the issue of “extrajudicial killings” insinuated
that he would buckle down, irritating him more which made him remark, “who is
he”. They obviously enjoy poking at the
patience of Duterte who to them cannot compare with any other leader, just
because he hails from the south, hence, with unrefined manners. Their
impertinence shows that their hate of Duterte made them so naïve of the guy’s
own feelings. But, as the saying goes,
goodness really prevails over evil at the end….and just like a popular Pilipino
song, “Ako ang Nagwagi”…he indeed, came out the winner! On the positive side,
the incident could also be another blessing in disguise as it made the world
see that the Philippines has a gutsy president who dares to stand equal when it
comes to asserting justified rights, even to the president of the most powerful
nation in the world!
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