Duterte: Change Is Coming

I grew up in Mindanao. I have been to Davao several times. What struck me most is how disciplined the locals are. As I grew up, I became aware of why and how this has come to be - Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. Davaoeos are really proud of this person. I cannot blame them. Their city is really peaceful, there is no heavy traffic, the streets are clean and the list goes on. I started to admire this person for his authoritarian ways. Others would not accept such harsh means. But it worked. And I can attest to that.

The question now is, will it work on a national scale? I would like to see how he would do it on a larger level and give it a chance. If Davaoenos are not willing to share Duterte, I am more than willing to let others experience the wonders he can do by voting for him.

He is currently under fire because of the things he admitted in public and the foul language he used on a religious leader. He may be at fault but be the first to cast a stone on him if other politicians are as clean as they claim to be. We all have our positive and negative sides. But I choose to focus on his positive side. He gets work done and he disciplines his constituents. All these he does to protect the public and of course his city. He welcomes guests and alike but he also does not tolerate if they do not abide by his laws. His unbiased view on things is important especially nepotism and cronyism is rampant in the Philippine government.

People who live far from Davao find him ruthless but the very same people are complaining about our current leaders. The set of leaders we have right now are all prim and proper. But have they done anything to the betterment of this country? Yes. But how many compared to how many Mayor Duterte has done? He has proven over and over how he can improve our country by comparing to what he has accomplished in Davao. He will just have to adjust the area of responsibility, the number of people and change some laws, people in charge and soon the Philippines will be on its way to being a developed Asian country.

Still, some people think he has conflicting ideas. He plans to bypass the laws just to make sure offenders are punished. As a student taking up law, I cannot help but discern whether he means what he says or this is just his way to set expectations. I always believed in the saying, “In order for a leader to lead, he needs to be able to follow.’’ This being said, I believe Mayor Duterte will follow the laws and he is not the vigilante that other people think. His ways are just not conventional but not beyond the laws.

If we want change, then we should not discount on it. If our leader is strict and firm, we should not ridicule or find ways around it but instead, embrace it. For an unconventional leader but gets things done, vote for Mayor Rodrigo Duterte just like I will.