Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte retires, killing thousands in ‘war on drugs’

Surprisingly and true to form, the controversial President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, announced on Saturday that he would not run as a running mate in the May 2022 elections, as planned, and that he will step down. policy once his term is over. the current mandate ends.

Thus, he opens the way for his daughter to be a candidate for the head of the country.

Among his legacy, he leaves many fragments, resounding controversies and thousands of corpses victims of the bloody war on drugs that began when he came to power in 2016, which did not prevent, however, that it continues to have great support from the population. .

“The prevailing feeling among Filipinos is that I am not qualified and it would be a violation of the constitution to go beyond the law, the spirit of the constitution” to run for vice president, Duterte explained, 76 years old.

“Today, I am announcing my retirement from political life,” he concluded.

The Philippine Constitution limits elected presidents to a single six-year term. A few months before his, Duterte had announced that he would run for the vice-presidency.

He was to team up with one of his key aides, Senator Christopher Lawrence Go, who was to run for president.

Death squads and thousands of corpses

Many have seen in this gesture an attempt to evade justice after September 15, the International Criminal Court (ICC) gave the green light to an investigation into the war on drugs sponsored by the president.

Before taking power, Duterte swore blood would flow and that the dead, traffickers and consumers, would feed the fish in Manila Bay.

The president kept his word and some humanitarian organizations estimate the dead at more than 20,000 at the hands of the police and death squads.

A recent poll, conducted by PulseAsia Research, indicated that Duterte had backed down in voting intentions, AFP reported.

Another poll by Social Weather Stations showed that 60% of Filipinos did not believe Duterte’s run for vice-president met the essence of the Constitution.

However, the surprise surged this Saturday when Go, and not Duterte, presented his candidacy for vice-president before the Election Commission.

The current president will thus end a decades-long career as mayor of the city of Davao, his southern stronghold, and a term as president.

His daughter, heir to power?

Duterte’s maneuver leaves the way open for his daughter, Sara Duterte-Carpio, to run for president. At 43, the lawyer and current mayor of Davao is very popular among the population and conducts several surveys.

In the past, he has said he would not run if his father also attended the elections, which is no longer a problem now.

If he had to finally take this step, the opposition believes that his candidacy would serve his father to keep your power in the shade and protect themselves from the action of justice.

Meanwhile, the spectacle of Philippine politics runs its course. On Saturday, the electoral commission began registering candidates for elections in which, in addition to the president and vice-president, several senators and a good number of lesser positions are chosen.

The first to formalize his candidacy for the head of state was former renowned boxer Many Pacquiao. A former ally of Duterte, with whom he also shares origin, their relationship has deteriorated in recent months amid allegations of corruption and other disputes.

Other names for the presidential race that ring true include actor-turned-politician and current mayor of Manila, Francisco Domagoso; former police chief Panfilo Lacson; the current vice-president and political enemy of Duterte, Leni Robredo; or the former senator and son of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.

Source: La Vanguardia