Duterte ‘praying’ to God?

Not content with having inflicted his style of misgovernance on Filipinos for six years, President Duterte was reported to be waiting for a “divine message” to tell him if he should run for vice president after his term expires, in the face of the constitutional prohibition against any extension of his free-board-and-lodging lease on that vast royal estate called Malacañang Palace (“Duterte for VP in 2022? ‘He leaves it to God’—Palace,” 5/27/21).

Spokesperson Harry Roque confirmed it and asked the public to just leave it at that, not wanting to elucidate what that presidential derangement or “genius” was all about: Why hadn’t past presidents under the current Constitution, who could only dream of a second term, thought of that before? The answer was most likely because such egregious display of their greed for power was too embarrassing!

And pray tell, is that the very same “God” Mr. Duterte once called stupid? Is he seriously asking that “stupid God” to enlighten him if it’s okay to fool the Filipinos one more time? Everyone knows what will happen if he becomes “vice president” to an expendable president he himself has handpicked.

Does he think the “God” he is praying to is too dumb to know what his true intentions are? More importantly, have Filipinos become sadomasochistic? The first time, shame on Mr. Duterte for all the 2016 campaign promises that turned out be nothing but “jokes, lies and bravado.” Should he succeed this second time, shame on all of us.

MARGIE MEGAN LIBRANDO
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