By Raïssa Robles
This was a very difficult piece to write.
Not only because of the topic but also because of the viciousness of online supporters of President Rodrigo Duterte, especially the bots and the trolls.
The middle ground for debate on the President’s most controversial policies is rapidly shrinking. Soon, merely questioning the President’s actions could be branded cyberterrorism. And so, before this happens, I decided to write two pieces.
The first piece – excerpted below – discusses Duterte’s moves that eerily echo those of his political role model, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.
The second piece – which I will wait for South China Morning Post to upload – is an interview with a retired general and a military historian on Martial Law. The general who is a Duterte supporter told me why he is against imposing Martial Law nationwide. The historian explained to me how Martial Law is a tool that can be used legitimately.
Meanwhile, here is an excerpt from my main piece published by South China Morning Post (HK):
QUESTIONS ON HEALTH OF DUTERTE – AND OF PHILIPPINE DEMOCRACY
President’s brief absence from public view reinforces fears over nationwide martial law
BY RAISSA ROBLES
18 JUN 2017
As fierce fighting in Marawi City between government troops and Islamist militants enters its fourth week, President Rodrigo Duterte mysteriously dropped out of public view for a few days, adding fuel to the speculation long swirling in the Philippines about the possibility of nationwide martial law.
Duterte failed to show up to Monday’s Independence Day celebrations and the traditional vin d’honneur at the Malacañang Palace was abruptly cancelled. Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said he was “not feeling well” but was “in excellent health”. On Wednesday, with the president still a no-show, Abella told reporters, “There is nothing to worry about in terms of sickness, major sickness.” Duterte just needed time “to rejuvenate” from a “brutal” 23 days of war.
Duterte finally resurfaced on Saturday after five days, and joked he had a “circumcision”.
He has in the past admitted to having Buerger’s disease, or narrowing of the arteries due to excessive drinking, a spine injury, acid reflux and daily migraine. So fears about the health of the 72-year-old president will not go away in a hurry, neither will concern about the health of the country’s democracy, which Duterte has long been suspected of subverting for an eventual autocratic takeover.
he speed with which the Supreme Court is moving on the vice-presidential electoral protest of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr, for example, has alarmed many. Without naming Duterte, Vice-President Leni Robredo – whom Bongbong accuses of cheating in the election and who belongs to a rival party – sounded the alarm on Monday at the “Defend Democracy Summit”. She warned: “We are already seeing our institutions being eroded. They are already weakening. We must move swiftly…to ensure they are strong enough for our children and our children’s children.”
Robredo is the constitutional successor to Duterte but he has treated her like a political pariah. During his state visit to China last October, Duterte said Bongbong could be the next vice-president – if he wins the electoral lawsuit. On Friday, the Supreme Court granted Bongbong’s request to appoint a three-man body to accept evidence and testimonies from witnesses. No election dispute for the top two posts of the land has ever moved this fast.
To add fuel to the fire, Duterte said this month that he would happily hand over the presidency to Bongbong or his defeated running mate, Alan Peter Cayetano. Duterte is unable to do that under the 1987 constitution and plans to scrap the charter. A team appointed by him has been drafting a new one that would put in place a parliamentary-federal system, effectively abolishing Robredo’s post and likely removing all the present safeguards on the president’s martial law powers.
The present constitution limits such powers. The Supreme Court began a review last week into whether Duterte was justified in imposing martial law in all of Mindanao after Marawi City descended into chaos due to a failed operation by security forces to capture Isnilon Hapilon, leader of the Islamist militant group, Abu Sayyaf. Marawi is the second most populous Muslim city in the Philippines, yet it would be easy now to mistake Marawi for a town in war-torn Syria. Over 200 people have been killed in the clashes there so far.
Cynics suggest Duterte’s raising of the Islamic State (IS) bogeyman is merely a pretext for taking a tighter grip on power. Their fear is not that the country is about to be overrun by black-flag-waving IS militants, but that Duterte is taking the country back to the past – harking back to a style of rule last employed by former president Ferdinand Marcos, from whose playbook Duterte has increasingly appeared to be borrowing.
The president’s chief government lawyer, Solicitor General Jose Calida, said as some magistrates expressed fears of human rights abuses: “[Duterte’s] order of martial law is markedly different from that issued by President Marcos.”
SHADES OF MARCOS
For those with long memories, a threat of nationwide martial law should not be surprising. In last year’s presidential campaign Duterte had said: “I have no interest in running for president…I will only agree if people allow me to declare martial law.” He also promised a revolutionary government because “I have to stop criminality, corruption, and I have to fix government.” Things would “be bloody” only for the criminals and corrupt, he had assured.
But to those with even longer memories, parallels between today’s situation and that of Marcos’ reign are likely to prove discomforting.
The southern island of Mindanao, home to about 21 million mainly Christian people, is the site of two long simmering conflicts featuring both Muslim rebels (thought to number about 13,000) and communist dissidents (thought to number several hundred) who have been locked in on-off fighting with state forces for decades. It was to stamp out both groups that Marcos first declared martial law in 1972.
In the following four years, the war with Muslim rebels resulted in an estimated 50,000 casualties. These came on top of the wider toll from Marcos’ dictatorship, estimated to have resulted in more than 3,200 people being murdered, over 35,000 tortured and more than 70,000 being illegally detained. The regime also left a colossal debt of US$26 billion (the Marcoses were accused of stashing away US$10 billion) while over half the citizenry slid into extreme poverty.
So perhaps it’s understandable that when Duterte warned, “those of you [who] have experienced martial law … it will not be any different from what President Marcos did. I’ll be harsh”, it shocked the victims of Marcos’ 14-year dictatorship.
It did not help that Duterte also signalled his intent to resurrect one of the most notorious features of Marcos’ tyranny: the Arrest, Search and Seizure Orders (Assos). Duterte, a prosecutor under Marcos, insisted the post-Marcos 1986 constitution empowered him to issue Assos. “As to Assos, I don’t know if they are illegal or not, but it is the practice. Martial law includes arrest without warrant, search without warrant,” said Duterte, who described martial law under Marcos as “very good” and the late strongman as “the best” and “brightest” Philippine president ever.
THE MARCOS PLAYBOOK
To read the rest, pls. click on this link.
Edgar Lores says
*******
This makes for chilling reading. And, indeed, the cited parallels are remarkable.
However, there are differences. This time there are an awareness and a pushback from individuals within institutions, from news and social media, and from society. This insightful post is an excellent example of the divergence from what went on before.
These differences arise from a previously scarred and now informed citizenry – thanks, in part, to your many efforts as a couple. One hopes and trusts that these differences will make all the difference… this time.
*****
arc says
the ultimate ego trip, declaring martial law on the hapless nation. the feel of un-opposed power may make digong feel good, but may downside yan. martial law can backfire, the way it backfired on makoy, who got run out of the country, the people having enough of him.
and the world is watching and may not be complacent, it can impose trade sanctions on pinas and cut down on aids. people will starve and then starving people dont care about digong’s martial law. so what if they got shot? many more will take their place. worst if starving people will side with terrorists and where would digong be?
arc says
if digong brutalize and oppress the people to much, people might think sharia law is better than martial law and embrace isis.
playamoth says
There are thousands of refugees in Marawi. Where is UNHCR? ‘Mura’ pa more Digong!
arc says
to prevent overcrowding, the thousands of refugees will be housed in make up tents kuno. sooner pls rather than later. the earlier the intervention, the better the outcome, and the less sickly refugees are likely to become. diseases spread quickly with overcrowding and the sharing of meager facilities. there is dehydration and lack of drinking water, food as well. and they so missed their home and previous lives.
Mac McCarty says
As a martial law survivor, all this makes me understandably apprehensive. Only seven months after the Marcos declaration, I was already sharing a very crowded jail cell with a couple of NPA originals, so I came to understand how martial law itself actually *created* rebellion, simply by making life unlivable for many whose opposition was based on their despair of ever restoring their personal liberty & the welfare of their families through any means other than armed conflict.
Thus, a small core of NPA & Muslim ideologues saw their ranks swell with petty offenders, the gored ox crowd and, perhaps saddest of all, those young enough to be taken in by the illusory “romance” of armed rebellion. We are so familiar with the story as to be almost jaded. Marcos *created* through martial law’s oppressions, the very revolution his proclamation claimed it would eradicate. Duterte seems to be bounding down the same road as hard as he can go.
I want to make a couple of statements as clearly as possible:
1) Neither Islamic militancy nor NPA ideology will *ever* be eliminated, extirpated or crushed, no matter how many Filipinos are arrested, tortured, killed or disappeared.
2) Negotiation with the NPA will never prosper–because false negotiations, cease-fires & agreements are, to them, ideological tools–way stations on the path to collapse of the legitimate government. The Muslim situation is somewhat different. Just as was the case with the NMLF, the MILF negotiation will work (and did begin to, before the BBL/Peace Process became the “good” that was the enemy of Duterte’s “perfect” federalism). And yet smaller bands–both deranged jihadis and live-by-the-gun bandits–will always try to carry on the fight.
What then, could possibly work? Just as with the cursed “drug war” attention and treasure must be applied to root causes. Why does the NPA target gov’t development programs? Because they do not *want* the gov’t to succeed in making Filipino lives better–because every family whose life actually improves enough to see some path out of generational poverty is one less family from which they can successfully recruit.
Much the same conditions persist in Mindanao, with added complications. As we have seen throughout the entire recent history of Moro insurgencies, from the Marcos years, through Mamasapano right up to Marawi, there is no greater spur to unification of Muslim militancy than to insert heavily armed gov’t troops into the situation. One primary notion of the BBL was that it at long last recognized that Muslims policing Muslims was the real path to de-escalation.
Any peace process must deal with the currently dominant separatist group (the MILF, in the case of the BBL) that recognizes that *some* smaller groups will opt to continue to fight, but that those die-hards *must* be dealt with primarily by other Muslims. Otherwise, the same cycle begins again. Likewise, instead of perceived gov’t *military* intervention, the gov’t must be seen to actually aid in the development of the nation’s poorest region.
What we are currently seeing from Duterte is the polar opposite of what actually works. Indeed, we are seeing the same Marcos-style militarization that ensures escalation. It would appear that escalation is exactly what he desires, as justification for the expansion of his (already) dictatorial powers. Sadly, our fate may have been sealed by the last election.
abe rato says
so do we have to wait for his full term and agonize?
arc says
ikaw ang akong kamatayon, ikaw ang . . . habang natulog is digong at nagpahinga, the terrorists were relentless and know how to prioritize, 1st things comes first and give marawi city their full attention. so unlike digong, his sleep comes 1st, rested for 5days and resurrected on the 6th day. he lost ground, digong did. and the fighting in marawi city is in its 5th week na.
do we have to wait for digong’s full term? the terrorists did not, and struck. I think, the military is quite happy to wait it out, their backpay is paid in full and there is money and medals in the offing. secure ang future nila and that of their families. those that received medals, doble and severance pay yata. aim yata ngayon ng military is not only to drive away the terrorists (good luck with that one) but to gain themselves medals of valor. currently, each medal of valor is worth 20thousand pesos na pension kada buwan, their widows will be set for life. and dead soldiers gotta beso-beso with the god of war, mars, he, he, he.
moi, not waiting his full term po, not gathering moss too. I have my own terms to live, politicians can get themselves stuffed like olives, he, he, he. I’ve got comments to keep going, anomalies to point out. stopping and looking and listening, and keeping my head down. ops, I drop my wig!
arc says
there is more fun in penis! ops, pinas, po. there is more fun in pinas! hic. kampai!
Kamote Procopio says
I think he will not finish his term, either people will have enough of him or he will meet his maker / lucifer.
arc says
ay, baka he’ll die in his next round of treatment in china at gawing panlaman ng siomai, he, he, he. siomai ala dabawenyo.
arc says
thanks po for your insight. 1st in history we got a mindanawan president and hope was high that mindanaw would finally be at peace, peace and prosperity. the mindanawan president would be emphatic and know what is best for mindanaw and its people. turns out the president is fast becoming a makoy clone. this does not bode well for mindanaw.
true, it’s impossible to eradicate militancy but it can be minimized and controlled. lgus from marawi and neighboring districts wanted to be part of the solution, their city, their problem, and offer to help. but, they were denied even that. I wish though, their help and input were sought in some way.
playamoth says
Again, the 3200 figure of people murdered under Marcos tyrannical Martial Law only counts the leftist casualties, disregarding the massacres that happened upon Muslim communities during that time. The arrest, search and seizure orders of Marcos is nothing to the accuser, judge, executioner, and investigator we are experiencing under the Duterte regime. His mental health gets into question from his flip-flopping statements that confuses his cabinet and the military.
arc says
digong’s cabinet and the military as well as the kapolisan are all busy defending digong, making and creating excuses for him and making fake news as they go. last I heard, the military are moving into marawi city’s ground zero in clearing operation kuno, the mautes are weakened kuno, and less able to fight kuno, only to have fighting start anew with more bouts of bombings in marawi city. so, mayhap, that is what the military meant by clearing operation: clearing marawi city of buildings that still stand and bring them all down to rubble. and amidst the bombings, did the military caught any mautes?
yes, in ilo-ilo where there is no martial law, relatives of the mautes were caught, they may or may not have anything to do with the terrorists mautes, but will all be brought back to mindanaw, and under martial law, made to lose their freedom and maybe, their lives too.
and would you believe it! the military will be selling t-shirts kuno, I support the military will be on the shirts, all to raise money kuno. maybe for digong’s next trip abroad? and as always, military top brasses will be tagging along, he, he, he. all expenses paid.
leona says
In a mess…
LH Committee of Congress vs CA: LH says CA special 4th Div no jurisdiction.
LH then issues SHOW CAUSE order to justices of Div to explain. What is the jurisdiction of LH then?
LH then cite that possibly even a trial court – RTC, could issue write of Habeas Corpuz against Congress. Thus, court has no jurisdiction. What is the legal basis for this contention?
LH Cttee is stupidly interpreting the Constitution, Hierarchy of courts and Legislative bodies like the Moon is the Sun and vice-versa.
The ego of the members of the LH Cmttee is onion-skin. Thus, there is a mess.
Oot nga ang LH Cmttee. No more rule of law. ‘Tis the role of low.
he he he Sonofagoons!
leona says
IBP…for lawyers of the ‘Pinas, says: If [ when ] LH Cmttee of Congress is of the position that the justices of the CA did a grave abuse of discretion, a petitiion for certiorari under Rule 65 may be filed with the SC.
A logical Rule of Law is wise to follow. Who is/are wise?
. . . the law is wise.
he he he
leona says
IBP link
http://www.interaksyon.com/ilocos-6-ibp-sees-no-need-for-discord-between-legislature-judiciary/
arc says
yay na yay! I look forward to imee marcos testifying. brother bong gives advice for her not to attend. I think, imee should attend, wearing her infamous red dress, the one she wore on the cover of certain magazine. imee marcos, takot? never! her tatay is now entombed sa libingan ng mga bayani, she should be a bayani herself and re-fight for ilocos 6! not by snubbing the inquiry, for like digong who snubbed independance day celebration, imee is not snubbish. anak yan ng dictator who never turned away from a fight, and ought to show the might and power that flowed in her dictatorial veins. go and testify and flatten them inquisitors with her presence and her logic, her sister grace poe will be watching closely, yata.
arc says
digong is not wise, he is the law! run, pinas, run! where po?
ay, leona. talagang iba na ang ihip ng hangin and the wind from the south is harbinger of bad news.
anyhow, for once, I’d like to see lh and the judiciary go head to head. see which head is thickest. while we people at the grass roots suffers the indignity, let them higher people up there fight for their supper. with both their training and good pays, plus status and wide ranging influences, they should be able to neutralize each other. let’s sit and watch, he, he, he. fly me to the moon and let poo among the stars . . .
leona says
Columbia University neuroscientist Dr. Carl Hart hit back anew at the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, calling the president “ignorant” for the latter’s understanding of drugs and drug abuse.
“This is the most abhorrent claim made by (Duterte). Millions of people around the world take this drug. For a variety of conditions. We don’t see anyone’s brain shrinking,” Hart said.
Dr. Hart’s brain shrunk after he got death threats while in ‘Pinas!
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/scitech/science/613745/duterte-ignorant-about-drugs-says-neuroscientist/story/
he he
arc says
lovely! you beauty! in pinas the top people have ‘shrunken brains’ and most of them work for the president, got their jobs through him too. in old age, the brain shrunk yata, many cells died and cannot be replaced, shriveled because of un-use. use them or lose them. dr hart did right in leaving pinas pronto. had he stayed longer, his brain would have shrunk too, he, he, he. brain shrinkage is contagious.
cheers, leona. let us try not to shrink our brains. the more we keep our brains active with mental skirmishes and verbal interactions, etc, the more we hang on to our mental powers. keep the mind busy, learn new things, do new things, or the mind will go to mush. and pls dont use or take illegal drugs, they’ll only give false courage and distort things. digong should know.
Ken.A.Ford says
… Yup… no brain shrinking… just killing and raping (after killing 2 women), and 3 children.
http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/29/17/trip-trip-lang-man-admits-raping-2-bulacan-massacre-victims-while-high-on-drugs
ever-centrist says
To be honest—one reason why I can’t take seriously the notion of Duterte angling for dictatorship is his age and condition—he’s an old man, and he’s sick. Marcos was probably far healthier (relatively speaking) compared to Duterte’s current state now. Marcos also was hands-on (and capable of such) in steering his affairs; he was not only corrupt, but also brillant and cerebral—to the point where he even saw the need for getting intellectuals to formulate an entire ideology/narrative to justify his (mis)rule. Such finesse, I find, is probably not easy for Duterte to possibly emulate—considering that his “style” (down-to-earth populist rhetoric) doesn’t seem to parallel that of Marcos’ pretensions to intellectualize his rule, his experience is solely local (as opposed to Marcos’ exposure to national politics before the presidency) in nature, and the most important fact: a sick man, I think, can hardly be a primary schemer.
I don’t worry about Duterte. I worry about those behind the Throne of the Emperor, who claim to speak im His Will.
arc says
maybe, po, it’s because of his age and condition that people around him do take advantage of him, madali siyang mauto. anyone old is recycled and now digong is appointing military and polis retirees to top jobs. retired na sila, decommissioned na, and maybe, their knowledge is not up to par, not been updated and not up to today’s standard. some probly have early onset dementia and waffle like digong, adherent and enamored to the past. if given senility test, I wonder how many will fail.
jerry says
What if…if everything he do is to prepare for the comeback of Marcos son?
arc says
he can prepare as much as he likes, does not mean he’ll be successful though.
arc says
he, he, he, bong marcos must now think of digong as pangalawang ama. yong unang ama, the one supposed to be genius, gave bong only good muscle coordination, not super coordination but good only, passable but not extra ordinary. itong pangalawa, aba, better late than never, more appreciative yata siya of the tyke bong marcos is. daddy!
Marmee Cruz says
Why is Duterte “lulubog-lilitaw?” What’s the real score?
Johnny Lin says
Latest News
“Mr Huang, Chinese businessman who donated the 10,000 bed rehab center in Nueva Ecija is under investigation by Beijing give for CORRUPTION”
Duterte met him for the first time last Oct 2016 when he visited China. Duterte praised the guy as “the kind of people the Philiipines needed”
Duterte has the tongue of an angel. With so many CORRUPT politicians backing him up, he still manages to praise a Chinese foreigner tainted with CORRUPTION. Duterte probably has a magnetic personality that attracts him to CORRUPT PEOPLE, namely, Marcos, Arroyo, Estrada, Binay, Alvarez,Pichay etc.
if Duterte is not corrupt as he claims, then influential people surrounding him, family members and close friends, are CORRUPT that’s why CORRUPT PEOPLE are lining up behind him. No other reason to think of about his magnetism to these scumbags. Marcos family and Mr Huang are shining examples.
He he he
vandr says
birds of a feather?
Johnny Lin says
Secret no more. Macho life to be taken away by macho scourge.
Prostate Ca no longer hidden from public
He he he
kalakala says
“secret no more”… still secret pa rin para sa aming grupo, kaya link please…
Vhin AB says
“… had allegedly been seen entering Fuda Cancer Hospital in Guangzhou, China.’
Duterte, of course, denied it was cancer, “Addressing the picture of him at the Fuda hospital, Duterte explained that he had gone there for a procedure related to his genitals.”
So, it remains a secret.
http://www.newsweek.com/philippine-president-does-not-have-cancer-had-third-circumcision-instead-554140
arc says
thank you, po, for the link. my funny bone is quaking na naman, may pangatlong tuli si digong! might as well remove or excise the whole banana republic!
so okay, mayhap, digong got free 1st class medical treatment in china and given the best of medical care china can give in exchange for him giving china freedom to grab pinas territories. something for something, tit for tat, na-tat ng china ang pinas. galing! na-tit din si digong and with it, the whole sambayanan as well. china got digong by the balls!
if digong owe china his life, he should not use pinas as payment. friend niya ang china, well and good, but friendship has limit. digong has already given china more than he should, it’s about time he shows gumption and start saying no to china. else mauubusan tayo ng territory, while at the same time, panay buhos ang illegal drugs from china with most of drug profits going back o china.
santa maria, digong, use your head, not your balls! he, he, he.
Marmee Cruz says
Is this true? How reliable is it? He does look a little weak and seemed “milder in his latest TV appearances.”
leona says
“. . . “….thirteen more bridges across the Pasig River” each “will have five lanes on both sides.” Where in Heaven’s name, Messrs. Diokno and Villar?” – Buddy Gomez – Cyberbully. http://news.abs-cbn.com/blogs/opinions/06/30/17/opinion-troubled-bridges-over-water
13 additional dream BRIDGES in Metro Manila? !
Why not check many towns in the Philippines separated by rivers NEEDING bridges! Country has so many. Check the site below.
leona says
Towns that may be needing bridges
https://www.google.com.ph/search?q=philippine+towns+separated+by+rivers&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwinl_Sf9ObUAhUFNJQKHUqIBoEQsAQIKA&biw=1366&bih=638
vandr says
WOW! sana totoo. ung C-5 nga hindi maidugtong sa C-5 extension. you need to make a very long U-turn thru a thick traffic from merville to sales to the east service road, vice versa. and the C-6 road construction is on-going since time immemorial.
arc says
13 bridges across pasig river, I wonder what the engineers report will be: feasible, not feasible, that is the question.
13 bridges will serve as invitation for people from the provinces to dagsa in metro manila once again with metro manila becoming more and more centralized. more people, some desirable, some not so, more rubbish, more congestion, more problems uli. build, build, build. all the roads leads to rome. this silk road is getting tangled, most likely build by the cheap. the grenfel tower in london that burned down, the cladding came from china. not nice. if the 13 bridges use materials made in china, the builders and engineers all chinese imports, god have mercy on us all. he, he, he, and if those bridges are marupok and fall down at the 1st rumble of earthquake, de bale na, they’ll all fall down on pasig river, and then swept out to sea and with them, the people on the bridges, the motor vehicles as well. build, build, build.
arc says
anyhow, it’s marawi city the needs the build, build, build. the place is durog na, and martial law is not helping. digong will build marawi city kuno, but ends up destroying it. build, build, build, naging bomb, bomb, bomb with more aerial bombardments coming marawi’s way.
raissa says
Leona, do you have a map where the bridges will be?
Thanks.
karlgarcia says
Do far only 2 bridges across the river are on the planning or development stage, namely:
1. Binondo-Intramuros Bridge
2. New Estrella Pantaleon Bridge
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_crossings_of_the_Pasig_River
A Pasig River Expressway is also proposed.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasig_River_Expressway
arc says
thank you po for the link. I understand from the link that the two bridges will cost roughly 208 millions! hindi pa approved yang plano, at wala yatang pondo.
karlgarcia says
Welcome arc.
Sa ngayon drawing pa lang.
Johnny Lin says
Headline News in Philippine newspapers: “Pacquiao: We thought we won”
Pacquiao is a champion boxer and true blooded politician.
What do Filipino boxers and politicians have in common?
“After the fight, they always claim they were cheated on losing”
To all Filipino boxing pundits and ESPN sportscasters: Your scoring or opinions don’t count.
Only 3 judges OFFICIAL score cards count
Pacquiao must prove the judges wrong with rematch by KO of Horn
Move on, Pacquiao is not worth your heart attack
He he he
arc says
my sister saw it on australian sports news report that while jeff horn was talking during the pre-fight conference, pakyaw disrespected horn by texting continually and not listening like horn does not matter one iota, bad manners for a supposedly good christian that pakyaw is. horn only got 1/10th yata of the 10million dollars of pakyaw’s pay, a matter of $500K. but horn got pakyaw’s much prized belt, plus lots of sponsors now coming to horn with offers of money.
the fight lasted 12 rounds. pakyaw who is champion could not ko’d horn, horn give as much as he received; and naturally, and won on points, unanimously.
we thought we won, well pakyaw’s team thought wrong. of course they have to say that, part sila sa 200 entourage ni pakyaw, well catered and well fed. if they say anything to the contrary, baka ma-accuse pa sila of disloyalty, na mga druggies sila!
arc says
pakyaw threw more punches kuno pero, those punches were not powerful enough to knock out the living daylight of horn. methink, it’s not on the quantity but on the quality of punches.
pakyaw was robbed of victory kuno and arum et al gusto ng rematch. I can envisage the millions of commission arum et al would be getting: pakyaw will be milked for all he’s worth. at happy na naman ang 200 entourage ni pakyaw, travel na naman uli sila, well catered at well fed uli. ah, the good life. all they have to to is convince pakyaw he still got what it takes.
greenpea says
In short natorotot si Manny Pacquiao.
kalakala says
pinakayaw ng sungay si pakyaw na tinurotot. he he he
arc says
total points po ni horn is 117, 113 naman po kay pakyaw. I was praying po that pakyaw lose the fight. for what he has done to de lima, let him lost the fight, lord. for aiding and abetting false witnesses to trample the righteous, lord, let pakyaw lose the fight. I think, the lord god heard my prayers and pakyaw lost. not a good feeling a fellow pinoy lost, but I’ll get over it.
to be a legend, you must defeat a legend, and that is what jeff horn has done. his punches were more effective than pakyaw’s. sabi, dirty fighter kuno si horn, well, what stopped pakyaw from doing the same? bearing in mind pakyaw already disrespected horn at the pre-fight conference. while horn was at the podium talking, pakyaw was continously checking and texting on his two very expensive looking iphones. sports reporter dayan castelehos was there but did not seem to see it, but other media did.
methink, the judges saw that pakyaw tried to hide his inefficiencies by throwing more punches, punches that did not do much damage to horn, cheers all.
raissa says
Hmmm. That’s a thought – that Pacquiao threw more punches but they were not effective. IN other words, the quality of his punches.
Vhin AB says
Too many boxing experts expressed their concern about how the fight was judged. Their analyses cannot be ignored if we try to be as objective as possible. Politics aside, Manny Pacquiao won that fight.
But of course, there will be a rematch. That’s the whole point in my opinion. The fight was free in the US via ESPN, not the usual pay-per-view (PPV), maybe because Pacquiao’s drawing power diminished significantly in the past few years. The rematch is expected to be a blockbuster via PPV, more money for Manny and Bob Arum. Now, it’s business as usual. Boxing sucks.
arc says
pakyaw won the fight? is that why he lost his belt?
mushupork says
Pinoys in the time of Duterte
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAYL5H46QnQ
raissa says
My apologies for not having updated yet.
This and the accompanying piece entitled –
MARTIAL LAW ACROSS PHILIPPINES WOULD BRING ABUSES: RETIRED GENERAL
http://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2098543/martial-law-across-philippines-would-bring-abuses-retired-general
took a lot out of me.
Will post a new one soon.
Sam says
Duterte threatens to jail martial law critics
—————————————————
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/616596/duterte-threatens-to-jail-martial-law-critics/story/
Does this why SC voted in favor?
arc says
the law failed them, supreme court failed them, now it’s up to the good people of mindanaw to save their sorry selves, 1st sila to feel the brunt of the man they voted to the top job. what a way to say thank you! declared martial on them all because man at top job cannot decommissioned a band of wanna be terrorists. but what’s to worry, man at top job meron high rating kuno of 78%, not 100%, but only 78%. not exactly valedictorin but passing.
trust and hope, the people of mindanaw know what to do. if they just sit and do nothing and wait for resolution, they can wait till doomsday. aerial bombarment will continue on. the military loves their boom, boom. better than new year. ay, time and again, the milits have captured kuno a camp of the terrorists, looks to me, it was abandoned camp, strewn with rubbish and few spent balas, but no terrorists. they escaped yata right under the milits noses. now, the milits have captured na naman, a stronghold kuno of the terrorists, a hotel yata, and again minus the terrorists. bakit ba walang silang nahuling high ranking terrorists? patay na kuno si ispilon hapilon, then buhay pa pala, then, he’s somewhere kuno overseeing the terrorists. ay naku, could the milits pls make up their mind how they want to portray hapilon?
the judges at the supreme court, aba, how many of them actually spoke to their minions in mindanaw, the judges there that are quaking each time a bomb is dropped? the supreme court, the highest law of the land, I think, is now wearing grass skirts under their robes, wearing white wigs and pakiay-kiay to the tune of bayang, bayang . . . sorry po, cannot say the lyrics. illegal na pala ngayon to say sucha.
arc says
the decision of the pizza supreme court is meant kuno to boost the morale of the milits. I think, people are forgetting that milits are paid to fight, they’ll fight when told to fight, stop when told to stop.
andrewlim8 says
NAGTATANONG LANG PO….
Kung Mindanao ang tapunan ng mga walang kwentang pulis (sangkot sa druga, bayolente, korap) e anong tawag natin sa mga taong nagmula sa Mindanao? Halimbawa: Duterte, De la Rosa, Pimentel, Alvarez, etc
Kasi kung angkop na basurahan ang Mindanao, ano ang tawag sa galing at nagmula sa basurahan?
arc says
batang lansangan, politikong lansangan, mamamayang lansangan, kaya pala minartial law ni digong ang mindanaw, his dumspter needs singaw makeover. mindanaw’s big brother; all in, terrorists, communists, pirates, drug lords, etc. there is much diversity in mindanw, the worse made worst. thanks to mindanaw’s own homegrown president. this is just the beginning, mindanawans gotta brace themselves for tsunami of moral decay that is yet to come. rotten apple made more rotten.
vandr says
siguro rotten durian naman..
john c. jacinto says
Ang tawag sa kanila ay mga latak ng basura.
leona says
sagot: Mga halimbawang walang kwenta! ha ha ha
Parekoy says
Martial Law in the entire Archipelago!
General Bautista tried to capture Hapilon in Marawi, but he underestimated Hapilon’s capability to defend his hideout.
While in Moscow, Duterte saw an opening and declared Martial Law in the whole of Mindanao, citing rebellion. To the surprise of the Military who themselves believed that rebellion is non-existent since they are only dealing with bandits and if to exaggerate their status to that of a terrorist. Note that terrorism is present in the US, European countries and in the Middle East, but they never declared Martial Law in order to fight terrorism. Also, according to our 1987 constitution:
Not even one of the three elements is present in Marawi on the failed capture of Hapilon. There is no rebellion, period.
Still, Duterte declared Martial Law! As expected, his lapdogs in the House of Representathieves readily supported Duterte’s declaration and with shameless show of brownnosing, they even added that they support Duterte to extend Martial Law until 2022. Lagman balked and reminded his colleagues in the House that it is their duty to convene and review the President’s declaration and discuss the merits of upholding or scrapping Martial Law, but Alvarez and his canine relatives in the kennel called Senate opined that there is no need to convene to prevent scrutinizing their master’s flawed declaration of Martial Law. Lagman had no choice but to go to SC to question the legality of the Duterte’s declaration and hoping that the SC Justices are not domesticated animals in contrast to the Representathieves. In the Philippines where TRO’s are traded like commodities, the majority of our SC Justices abdicated their duties for providing checks to the abuses of the Executive branch and subjugated themselves to their master Duterte out of loyalty or out of fear that they might catch cold and perish together with their families, courtesy of DDS.
While waiting for the SC’s decision on regarding Martial Law, Duterte ordered DOJ Sec Aguirre to downgrade the charges of murder to manslaughter the cases against the killers of Mayor Espinosa. This paves the way for having the killers to post bail.
With the SC’s decision favorable to Duterte, it led to Duterte be emboldened to order the reinstatement of the killers of Mayor Espinosa and to the dismay of the Senators, who made to look like fools and gave credence to Trillanes’ accusation that the Pro-Duterte Senators are lapdogs, Duterte ignored their recommendations of charging the killers of murder, instead he blatantly insulted them and taunted the whole country with his dictatorial actions.
Similar to Duterte’s failure to deliver his promise of getting rid of the drug menace within six months, the capture of the Mautes within three weeks has failed and Duterte realized that a protracted battle in Marawi gave him an excuse to ask an extension of Martial Law from the subservient lapdogs in Congress.
With the majority of Representathieves and Sinators under his beck and call, and with the majority of SC Justices in his pocket, Duterte is now ready to unleash his terror on the entire country, with the PNP and the Military as his enforcers!
With the faulty justification by the majority of SC Justices on expanding the area under Martial Law outside the area of battle Duterte now is prepared to declare Martial Law on the entire country.
Maybe we really need to go through the terror under Duterte in order for the Filipinos to go through an uprising and fight the number one terrorist in our country.
It seems Civil War is looming and inevitable that blood will flood our country.
Parekoy
07-13-2017
raissa says
Sorry for the delay in rescuing this from spam.
Just winding up some things.
arc says
martial law ni digong affects only civilians, with road blocks and less and less food reaching the bakwits in marawi city. people in neighboring sityos once they heard of food convoy, ambush the convoy and steals the food, nag-stock pile ng kahit ano-anong pagkain dahil pangmatagalan na ang martial law. looting and stealing is getting to be the norm . those areas cleared by the army ay dinagsa uli; looted, and to hide crime, sinunog ang mga gusali. wala kunong human rights abuses ang military, aba, hindi lang kasi reported ang mga iyon, baka pabagsakan na naman ng bombs ang lugar.
terrorists have no respect for martial law and not affected by it. sigi ang gyera, ganon din ang npa at abu sayyaf, business as usual sila.
and if you visit pawnshops, business is booming and you might just be able to find looted goods, furniture, jewels, at iba pang kagamitan. though some stolen goods are not pawned and now enhancing the homes of would you believe it – the military! their wives wearing stolen jewels, he, he he.
arc says
bangsamoro, peace and kapayapaan in mindanaw is much like digong’s jet ski: it’s all in the mind and nothing else.
mindanaw will not have peace so long as misuari’s name is banded about. misuari’s idea of peace is when he is obeyed and he gets his way, everytime and all the time, else there is only gulo of his own making. misuari is a terrorist and negotiating with him is foolish. digong must be blinded by his friendship with misuari.
if mindanawans want peace and kapayapaan badly enough, they’ll have it, bangsamoro or not.
leona says
You said it all Parekoy. . . Evil War is already here. Fresh and dried blood already looms our country. he he he
bcoolman says
It’s in the bible that he who lives by the sword shall die by the sword.
It will be bloody indeed.
arc says
apparently, digong is full of guilt for having sent soldiers to their deaths, and terribly overcompensated by throwing billions of money at the military, giving them gifts like cell phones, relojs, etc. methink, guilt clouded digong’s judgement, the full equation he cannot see. the military will get 39billions kuno while marawi city will only get 9billions worth of rebuildings. like the sufferings of the maranaws are nothing compared to the sufferings of the soldiers.
to be effective, digong ought to keep his guilt under control, not let it control him. and should really be throwing billions of money at the military and give them pay rises, gifts and bonuses only after the completion of a job well done, and not before. else, why would the military work hardest, catch all the terrorists, and stop the war now when they’re into good money? maybe, if the war drags on for another year, they might receive 100 billions! he, he, he.
already the military is receiving very good severance pay on top of their normal pay. and at the moment, the most productivity the military can show for the billions of money they are about to receive is the ruins of marawi, the terrorists still not routed.
arc says
guys, digong is going to wear marawi inspired barong tagalog kuno for his 2nd sona on 24 of july. sana, may punit at butas butas yang barong gaya ng mga gusali sa marawi na halos durog durog, o kaya, may patak ng dugo yong barong, symbolizing the dead of marawi city at saka those that died sa friendly fires.
dapat the barong is smeared with the tears of those bakwits na halos nasawian ng buhay habang nasa evac centers, tabingi to honor those maranaws that are suffering mental problems. preferably, the material the barong is made of is from malong, the malong that people in evac centers use. at kung talagang gusto ni digong na maki-isa sa mga taga marawi, he should let a bakwit from marawi city read his sona address, or part of it.