The good, the bad in this President

With the temporary closure of Boracay and President Duterte’s plan for a total ban on mining, I can tentatively say that this President is leading the country on the right track.

His iron political will to implement measures protecting our natural resources in the global warming age, despite big business interests, is crucial for our future survival.

This long-term approach, and other efforts on the environmental front, will certainly help my children and unborn grandchildren live in a greener Philippines.

Now, I said “tentatively,” because his single-minded fervor also accounts for his self-admitted extrajudicial killing of drug addicts.

I believe we would be better served if Mr. Duterte stopped EJKs and instead focused on building more drug rehabilitation facilities. As opposed to a literal dead-end solution like EJKs, providing drug addicts with more avenues for a second chance will potentially produce more productive members of society.

In zealously protecting our environment, Mr. Duterte may have selectively applied the lesson from the timeless fable of “The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs.”

A pollution-free Boracay and land use without destructive mining will certainly bring us a sustainable, golden future.

But with EJKs and their tragic impact on thousands of affected families, he is also decimating countless “geese” and our most precious national treasure — the Filipino people.

SOLIMAN DELARIARTE, [email protected]