Tag Archives: Duterte Cronies

You know how Duterte propaganda has lived off this idea that he is angry at the rich? That he is against the elite? That he is against their abusive ways, and anti-people policies? This is how refusing to give the Lopezes of ABS-CBN their franchise is justified; this is how the Prietos of the Philippine Daily Inquirer lost their power. This also sustains the idea that Duterte is pro-poor, para sa masa, si Tatay Digong kakampi ng mahihirap na Pilipino.

We have of course disproven this, regardless of what his base believes. He himself has admitted that majority of those killed in his drug war are poor — because the rich addicts are using other drugs anyway, and the wealthy who run the cartels, the drug manufacturing, the drug imports, he has no power to jail them.

But there’s an even more obvious, more blatant, display of Duterte siding with the rich: and it’s in his utter silence about issues that involve his oligarch, taipan, crony allies. Let us count the ways, shall we?  (more…)

The news has (rightfully) been taken over by the fact that a China Maritime Militia (CMM) vessel, where the CMM is “a subset of China’s national militia, an armed reserve force of civilians available for mobilization to perform basic support duties,” also “a fighting force on the front-line of China’s quest to control the seas.”

But so many things (as always) are happening across the country: activists and human rights advocates are being killed, Mangyan communities are being bombed.

And then there’s Malipay. An urban poor community in Bacoor Cavite which yesterday experienced violence in the hands of armed security and demolition personnel hired by the developers who want to destroy their homes and takeover their land.

To the Malipay community, the perpetrators are clear: the developer Vistaland and Lifescapes Inc. That’s the company OWNED by Senator and Duterte-campaign-funder Cynthia Villar, Duterte crony Manny Villar. DPWH Secretary Mark Villar. (more…)