The “LP patriots” dilemma

By Ermin Garcia Jr.

WE are midway into the term of the Duterte administration and we have not seen a cooling period between the President and his detractors since he took his oath for a 6-year term.

Destabilization efforts to unseat the President have been unceasing practically every day, that the NPA is practically becoming irrelevant in their continued efforts to overthrow the government.  Only Joma Sison in Netherlands is desperately trying to keep his presence alive in media.

Controversies after controversies on the war on drugs, corruption, his health and foreign policy are thrown at the government intermittently by the “LP patriots” that one can no longer keep track of what’s been settled and what’s not.

My most recent recollection after the elections was the Bikoy zarzuela. After charges and countercharges were hurled by and between the administration and the “LP patriots” , before or after Peter Advincula surfaced. I bet not many can recall what happened to the guy since he confessed he was used by the ex-Sen. Trillanes.

My recollection of the next issue was the story from the UNCHR, that it is authorizing the Special Rapporteurs to investigate the reported high incidence of killings in the government’s war on drugs. It is still harping on the 26,000 EJKs that the opposition claimed in 2017! But beyond the protestations aired by human rights groups in the US, efforts of the Special Rapporteurs have been stumped by threats of the Duterte administration of arrest if not barred entry by immigrations.

Then came the “ramming incident” that involved a Chinese vessel that reportedly left our fishermen to the elements to die. The “LP patriots” have been pressuring the government to adopt a more aggressive and confrontational approach, demanding some specific reparations from China even before an investigation of the incident could be started.

Within a week’s time, the “LP patriots” trained their guns on the exclusive fishing rights of Filipino fishermen that President Duterte found nothing wrong with allowing Chinese fishermen to fish in our exclusive economic zone.  

The threat of impeachment over his head was raised by the “LP patriots” over the issue, and this was met with a veiled threat from the President himself. Of course, it is doubtful if the new Congress will even get passed the initial process.

What the “LP patriots” in Metro Manila don’t seem to be aware of is the fact that Mr. Duterte has been baiting them with “targets” with his off-the-cuff remarks that he knows will grate their nerves no end.

Did you notice how he disappears from the scene for days only to surface with a picture of him lazily lounging in his home in Davao?  He constantly appoints newly retired military and police generals to the chagrin of career civil service people. He insults his detractors in their faces when they pepper him with their usual ad hominem, etc.

To this day, the “LP patriots” continue to be completely clueless on how they can pin him down to own responsibility for his “unstatesmanlike and unstudied reckless remarks”.  Yet, I don’t see their dilemma resolved for the better any time soon because they keep applying their perceived set of bias against him.

Here’s why!

President Duterte is not their kind of president who easily gets affected by unkind remarks. He does not regard them as his equal because they never functioned as a chief executive, only as legislators who have no notion of what communities’ problems and issues are.  

When he said he is “not a statesman, and cannot be expected to change” should be taken as central to the “LP patriots” dilemma.

Every time he addresses a group covered by national media, he rambles talking about anything for hours but the topic of the gathering, and sets aside prepared speeches. Because of this, no one is sure about his thoughts, not the LP patriots, not the media.

 It is what he was used to be doing for the past 20 years as mayor – no prepared speeches!

And because his off-the-cuff remarks are what they are, varied interpretations keep “LP patriots“ guessing what he meant to say.

The local media in Davao City have since learned how to report him –  not to take his rambling seriously! But the “LP patriots” insist on taking him to task all the time.

The LP patriots sure have a serious dilemma!

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