SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST | Published November 18, 2024
While his anti-narcotics campaign once had widespread support, a survey indicates 59 per cent now approve of the investigation into it
Growing backing among Filipinos for the International Criminal Court’s investigation into the killings that took place as part of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs signals the waning of his populist appeal ahead of next year’s midterm elections, analysts say.
Duterte, who is running next year to be mayor of Davao City once again, made headlines when he challenged ICC investigators to speed up their probe on Wednesday, telling them to “hurry up before I die” while testifying before a House committee probe into his administration’s drug war killings.
He previously shocked lawmakers with testimony that he had a vigilante “death squad” that helped him carry out his drug war when he was previously mayor of Davao City.
The former president is currently facing probes in both the House and Senate as well as an investigation by the ICC for crimes related to his anti-narcotics campaign, which human rights organizations estimate led to over 12,000 fatalities.
Duterte received widespread popular support for his drug war during his time in office, with one September 2017 survey finding that 88 per cent of Filipinos approved of it despite concerns over extrajudicial killings.
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SOURCE: www.scmp.com
RELATED: Duterte returns as Philippines’ political clans wage ‘a fight to the death’
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte appears before lawmakers at the Senate in Pasay, Metro Manila on October 28, 2024. Ezra Acayan/Getty Images
CNN | Published November 18, 2024
(CNN) — A foul-mouthed former Philippine president who jailed political rivals, insulted the pope and claims to have hired “death squad” gangsters is running for re-election in his hometown in a desperate bid to strengthen his scandal-hit political dynasty.
Labeled “Asia’s Trump” by some commentators due to his unorthodox leadership style and bombastic rhetoric, Rodrigo Duterte is aiming for a perhaps even more unlikely political comeback than Donald Trump’s seismic return to the White House.
Duterte, 79, wants to return as mayor of Davao City, on the southern island of Mindanao, where he held power for more than two decades before leading the archipelago nation between 2016 and 2022.
His return to politics is about more than a personal quest for power, analysts say – it’s an attempt to shore up support for his family against the Philippines’ other famed political dynasty – the Marcoses, who have an opposing vision for the country, particularly its relationships with the United States and China.
In a political culture dominated by clan-based alliances, the Marcoses and the Dutertes made a vow of unity when Duterte’s daughter, Sara Duterte-Carpio, ran for vice president alongside Ferdinand Marcos Jr. – son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who died in exile in 1989 after a brutal 21-year reign.
The duo won a landslide victory in 2022, but not even halfway through their term the alliance is disintegrating as Duterte-Carpio faces calls for her impeachment for alleged corruption, which she denies.
The Marcos-Duterte fallout has since descended into public tirades and name-calling – a hallmark of Rodrigo Duterte’s years as a straight-talking, filter-free president.
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