Being the country’s highest political leader, you are entitled to do some things. But keep in mind that privileges and power comes great obligation and responsibilities. Among these is that you have to keep your persona a public one; your life is an open book to everyone who wants to read and understand you as a person. President Rodrigo Duterte is not exempted from this explicit responsibility. So, to prove that he is just like any other politician and Filipino like us, here’s 10 surprising things that you should know about him.
Typical Teenager
Growing up, Pres. Digong is just like any other boys at school – ‘warfreak’ and ‘fearless’. He was usually involved in street fights and fist fights with his classmates, school mates or with any one whom he is not okay with. Despite his skinny figure, he has been able to put up a fight, making him quite a reputable teenage boy in his town. He used to spend most of his time on the streets, mingling and interacting with the common people. During this period he learned about the realities that there are in common people’s’ lives and this made him easy to connect with the ‘masa’. Because of being a war freak, he has been kicked out twice in Ateneo de Davao but was able to graduate in high school and went to the Manila to study law.
Pro- and Anti- Marcos
President Duterte has relatives who are Pro-Marcos and Anti-Marcos. His late relative Ramon Durano is a Marcos loyalist who really fought hard along Marcos Administration to wave the flag of Martial Law. As a matter of fact, even when defeated, Durano still believed that Marcos is the greatest leader this country ever had. On the other hand, Pres. Digong’s mother is an anti-Marcos citizen. Being the wife of the then Governor, his mother really fought against martial law. Now, President Duterte has not released any statements about what side he’s on during the Martial Law. but, what he said was Martial Law has both positively and negatively impacted the country.
Thoughts on Congress
President Duterte’s political undertakings has really a lot of stories to tell. He became the mayor of Davao in 1988, which in any case he said that he never thought of becoming one. His mayorship only happened by accident or some sort of misunderstanding. But being the brave man that he is, and having the heart to serve the people, he received the position. So he was the Davao City’s mayor from 1988-1998. He never won an election, three terms straight. After that, he has no choice but to get out of the city to run for a political position because as the law states, no one is allowed to run in the same city repeatedly; so congress it is. He fortunately won as the Congressman of the city’s first district in 1998. All he said was “congress is boring”. He said that there is no urgency or strictness in that branch of government so anybody can do whatever he/she likes. He even said that while he was the congressman, he was able to see the movies, spent more time to himself. Congress, is not really the place for a politician like him so after that term, he ran again to be the City’s mayor.
Views on LGBT
President Duterte, unlike any other ‘macho’ politician is a strong advocate of the LGBT rights. He in fact is the most LGBT sensitive candidate that he encourages LGBT people to run for office in Davao City. he calls for the proper and fair representation of these people who belongs in the marginalized sectors of the community. He believes that everyone deserves equal treatment, so why set aside the feelings of the LGBT? Moreover, he has passed a bill regarding an Anti-discrimination bill about the LGBT. On an interview with Vice Ganda, a popular comedian and a proud LGBT member, President Duterte said that he everyone, regardless of gender and race and other divisions, deserves to be happy.
