Photo Credits: R.B.A
The presumptive President, Rodrigo Roa Duterte, is on the cover of Time magazine in May.
Looking back fourteen years ago, the prestigious magazine featured Rody Duterte and gave him the nickname “The Punisher” because of his successful although violent actions against the criminals of Davao City.
Fourteen years after, at the heels of the recent Philippine national elections, Time magazine features him again after as he gets elected president of the Philippines whose six-year term starts in July 2016. The just concluded elections, although the official canvassing of the Comelec tally is yet to be started, proved highly competitive and bitter at certain times. Almost everything, including the proverbial “kitchen sink” was thrown to Duterte yet despite all the black propaganda that Rody Duterte faced, his supporters defended him until the election day and delivered to him a landslide.
an aerial shot of the mammoth crowd during Duterte’s grand miting de avance at Manila’s Quirino grandstand
Only a week after the ‘viral’ electoral process, the presumptive president has started initiatives to prepare his term of office. He promises to deliver on his election promises where priority is on the eradication of criminality, corruptions on various levels of government, addressing the issues involving the “contaminated” Philippine National Police (PNP) and a hard campaign towards illegal drugs. He has likewise extended to his election opponents peace offering and prays for the healing of the country. As expected, jubilant supporters from all over including millions of netizens and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who actively campaigned for Duterte, count radical changes in the country and look forward to the dawning of a better future.
