Duterte’s trio of hope
BONG GO, BATO, TOL
It was not always usual for an incumbent to keep high ratings mid-term, but the Chief Executive’s deft reading of politics has kept him above the game
Maintaining high popularity ratings in the mid-term of his six-year presidential journey, President Rodrigo Duterte received further validation from the people when he sent majority of his preferred candidates to the Congress in the last national elections of 2019.
It was not always usual for an incumbent to keep high ratings mid-term, but the Chief Executive’s deft reading of politics has kept him above the game.
Three neophyte senators now attest to this. But the President, one of them said, was just one part of their successful senatorial run.
Two Dutertes, he said, can read national politics as easy as they did in Davao City.
They admitted riding on the coattails of the President’s success. But they were emboldened further by the extra push they received from his daughter, Sara, now the Davao City Mayor.
Most significant among the President’s winning cards was Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go.
He had graduated from being “merely” the President’s assistant.
But he remains as Mr. Duterte’s go-to guy, consulted on matters of immense importance.
Go committed 20 years of his public service shadowing them Davao City Mayor and eventually President Duterte.
This made him ready for a bigger role when he was elected as senator with the third highest votes among 12 winners.
The Senate’s top vote-getters usually become presidential timbers. But that is too ahead for Go.
Attributing his rise to Duterte’s popularity, Go vowed to continue the President’s fight against drugs, criminality and corruption.
“I was not expecting this (popularity) but I think this is due to the people’s trust in President Duterte and our promise to maintain his campaign against illegal drugs, corruption and criminality,” Go said.
He vowed to serve as a “bridge” between the people and the President. But more than that, he made sure the government would not turn its back on its service to the poorest of the poor.
In his first year as a lawmaker, Go chaired the Senate Committee on Health and Demography and Committee on Sports and Development.
He institutionalized his brainchild — the Malasakit Center,” a one-stop-shop that provides financial assistance to Filipino patients through centers in hospitals run by the Department of Health (DoH). It aims to complement the Universal Health Care Act, a health insurance to every Filipino.
He vowed to serve as a “bridge” between the people and the President. But more than that, he made sure the government would not turn its back on its service to the poorest of the poor.
Go also pushed the creation of the National Academy for Sports which was recently signed by Duterte into a law.
Also victorious was former National Police Chief Ronald de la Rosa. He landed fifth in the roster.
De la Rosa shared that he had almost decided against seeking a national post although he still wanted to pursue public service because he was too young to retire when he left the PNP.
“I told myself, might as well use my remaining time to serve the country,” De la Rosa said.
He was advised by the President to seek the gubernatorial post of Davao del Sur, advising that he would find legislative work “boring.”
But Mayor Sara persuaded him to run for Senator instead. She endorsed him as a leading candidate of her party Hugpong ng Pagbabago.
“(President Duterte) has a big factor in my candidacy, otherwise I would not have been brave enough to run as Senator. But Mayor Inday Sara really played a huge part. She was the one who really pushed me to run for Senator and not Davao del Sur’s governor,” he said.
“She told me: ‘grab the opportunity, sir, because I am sure you will win the senatorial race. Running for governor will be easy for you but you have a chance to secure a slot for senator. Strike while the iron is hot.’ That’s what she told me,” De la Rosa disclosed.
Former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Francis Tolentino had tried his luck in 2016 but failed.
Hinging his campaign on the Duterte programs three years later, Tolentino had an easier route to the Senate after serving as the President’s Adviser on Political Affairs.“I reassessed myself based on my experience as a former member of the Executive Branch. I reevaluated myself as a lawyer so it would not be that difficult for me to transition into a legislator. Thereafter, I formed my legal team and then I came out with bills that fit my persona and my advocacies,” Tolentino said. Tolentino clinched the 9th spot in 2019. The trio admitted that a lot has to be done in fulfilling their new duties. But they vowed to serve the best they can. They could not fail their patrons who placed bets on them.