Sara Duterte so far on solid track to a 2028 presidential bid

Does Vice President Sara “Inday” Duterte have the momentum for a successful run to 2028? She never lost it despite her “ululations,” a word that the closeted professor Antonio Contreras liked to use in the past. He issues his prognosis on another Duterte presidency in his latest Manila Times piece on what he thinks is the vice president’s flagging prospects following the dismissal of the impeachment complaints against her.

We need to distinguish between reprieve and acquittal. The Supreme Court’s action did not examine the substance of the allegations. It did not pass upon whether Sara Duterte is guilty or innocent. It voided the impeachment complaint purely on procedural grounds. The charges remain, hanging over her like an unfinished sentence. If her allies are rejoicing, they do so on borrowed time.

It can’t be denied though that when Inday is in a fit of rage it’s true na para siyang “nauulol”. Nevertheless, her polling trust and approval numbers remain firm, despite all of what’s been thrown at her, impeachment included. Inday will most likely become the 18th president, provided she’s not physically impaired, that she can’t run in 2028.

The Yellowidiots and leftists are up in arms over the Supreme Court ruling for the simple reason that even if she can be impeached again in 2026, the momentum may not be there anymore.

Anyone who’s running for president will be busy with preparations and politicians at the local level and the legislative will be placing their bets on their candidates. In short, Inday’s momentum will only be strengthened though it won’t be a walk in the park because the oligarchs who were sidelined during the Duterte administration will definitely be doing all they can to prevent her from becoming president.

It remains to be seen what the US stand will be on another Duterte presidency. While President Donald Trump has not been interested in interfering in the domestic matters of another country, the tension between the US and China may see him reconsider this policy. The US was actively against Duterte when he ran in 2016 with the then US ambassador to the Philippines publicly stating that they’re not in favor of a Duterte presidency. In the end, Duterte still won.

The problem is the neither the administration nor the genuine opposition has a viable candidate to run against Inday.

Contreras and his counterpart Inquirer columnist Richard Heydarian can tag team Inday all they want but it won’t do much for their cause. They’re playing to a limited audience, the one that is staunchly anti-Duterte already. Meantime there’s the growing bloc of disenchanted Pinoys who are sick and tired of the country not being able to keep pace with its Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) neighbors. There is also the matter of the inconvenience of their existence in their own country where the quality of life is poor primarily because of corruption.

This bloc can be tapped by a third force which will genuinely advocate for their cause of good governance and aversion to politicking, as the diehards from the opposite sides of the political fence continue to do so. Hopefully someone steps up to the plate and takes on the challenge of leading this third force. We need it to happen if there’s any hope left for the Philippines.

The alternative to this is one where we continue our descent into hell ably aided by quislings from the liberal-progressives who, while they consist of the minority, are the most noisy.

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Ramon Ortoll

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