For the longest I have been discussing Davao City warlord Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte and his "friendship" with the NPA. Duterte, currently serving as Davao City's Vice Mayor under his daughter, Bench Warmer- I mean- Mayor, Sarah "Inday" Duterte Carpio makes no secret of his respect and admiration of the Maoist NPA and its objectives. Soon after first gaining power in the city in the late 1980s Duterte entered into what was initially a relationship of convenience with local NPA leader Leonicio Parago who is much better known by his nom de guerre "Ka Parago."
At the time much of Davao City was a battlefield with the NPA and various state sponsored paramilitaries duking it out with the non-combatants serving as cannon fodder for both sides. Enter Rodrigo Duterte. The son of a former provincial governor Duterte learned to play the game early on. Graduating law school he became a city prosecutor in Davao City, or what used to be called a City Fiscal, after a short stint as an instructor at the PNP, or Philippine National Police Academy in Manila. It was in this capacity that Duterte first came close to the NPA. By the end of 1985 Duterte's mother Soledad, known popularly as "Nanay Soleng," had fortuitously become the Davao Regional Chairperson of Corazon "Cory" Aquino's "Yellow Friday Movement." At the time Duterte himself had risen in the City Fiscal Office to the position of Special Counsel, charged with dealing with detained high ranking NPA figures. These two parallel tracks converged in 1986 when newly elected President Cory Aquino had Duterte appointed OIC (Officer in Charge) Vice Mayor of the City.
By 1987 Duterte began readying himself for the 1988 Mayoral Election in which he would be bucking the system by running for Mayor against Aquino's hand picked candidate, Zafiro Respicio. Though Duterte held a chance on his own owing to an inherent advantage offered by three other strong candidates besides Respicio throwing their hats into the ring, thus splitting the vote five ways, Duterte naturally sought to solidify his candidacy and therefore came up with a very risky but nevertheless ingenious scheme. As leader of the Aquino political machine in the Davao Region Duterte's mother became, in 1986, the Government's Chairperson in the brand new GPH-NDFP Peace Process which ridiculously had been engineered at the sub-regional level, as if a nationwide peace process wouldn't be complicated enough in a country with hundreds of ethnicities and languages (of course in those days the GPH was still the "GRP" and the NDFP was still the "NDF"). This position allowed Duterte, by tagging along with his mother, to capitalise on relationships already made in his role as Special Counsel at the City Fiscal's Office.
So it was that the NPA and Duterte made their "deal." In exchange for the NPA guaranteeing Duterte the vote in all NPA controlled barangays and districts Duterte vowed to run interference on the Government's side in allowing the NPA to carve out a large enclave comprising three of the city's outlying districts, an arrangement that exists until the present. Aside from merely gaining power Duterte, much to his credit, realised that he could use that initial deal as the foundation of a far more important arrangement that would benefit the entire region above and beyond Duterte's own narrow and purient interests. When he won election as Mayor in 1988 Duterte realised that the only way to build a power base in which his role was non-negotiable was to first, end the bloodshed that turned Davao City into the nation's most violent municipality bar none. Then, after reversing the municipality's status into that of a peaceful and stable community, make it conducive to investment and that Pilippine Holy Grail, "Peace and Development." Again, to his credit, Duterte had realised something most Philippine officials have yet to understand, "Peace and Development" is a universal value that must be applicable to ALL demographic shareholders. IF Bisaya, as the Christians on Mindanao are usually collectively labeled, needed to enjoy a stable, peaceful environment, so did the Moros, as the Filipino Muslims on Mindanao are collectively labeled. If Liberal Democratic groups desired employment opportunities with long term security, so did the multi-sectoral front organisations backing the NPA. Ergo, Duterte set about meeting all his constituents' needs.
Meeting with emmisaries of Ka Parago Duterte eventually brokered an agreement that relegated the NPA to those same aforementioned three city districts:
1) Paquibato
2) Toril
3) Marilog
and to a lesser extent the districts of Baguio and Calinan. In these three districts Duterte gave the NPA carte blanche to run a parallel government and run it as they saw fit. While Duterte couldn't do much in the way of keeping the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines, out of the NPA enclave it has often run heavy interference, most notably in the Summer of 2010 when, under Duterte's daughter, Mayor Carpio, the city withdrew its funding and co-operation for AFP tactical operations within the entire city (aside from the anti-terrorism Task Force Davao). Since then the city government and the AFP have managed to reconcile to an uneasy working relationship with each "respecting" the others' strong ideological stance but there is still no co-operation.
Vice Mayor Duterte betrays his position with little regard to what others will think or say. Having built Davao City into a bastion of economic stability on the back of his "no principles" political stance he has himself been given carte blanche by the region's movers and shakers. As long as the pesos keep pouring in, Duterte can step on anyone and anything he wants. Part of Duterte's shtick has been acting as the pointman on any NPA captures of Government personnel, anywhere on the island. Because of the warm relationship that the Maoists share with Duterte anyone captured by the guerillas is bery quickly handed off to the NPA "Custodial Front," Front 20, which encamps on the edge of Davao City. However, Front 20, the Conrado Heredia Front took a bad blow in late May of 2011 when the AFP's 6th Scout Rangers Company backed by the 25IB (Infantry Battalion) overan a rendevouz of four NPA Fronts in the municipality of Cateel, in Davao Oriental Province. Since then Front 53, the Herminio Alfonso Command, has assumed the role of Custodial Front though it too also encamps on a different section of Davao City's border.
Whenever the NPA captures a soldier or police officer Big Daddy Duterte "negotiates" their release with the NPA. It is absolutely win:win for Duterte in that it further endears him to the disparate political factions on the island, further entrenches his position as irreplacable peace maker and perhaps most of all, guarantees the publicity loving Duterte gads and gads of media exposure and face time. Conversely, when guerillas find themselves in difficult positions it is Big Daddy who comes to their rescue. When the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines, attacked that camp in Cateel and three NPA guerillas were critically wounded (including the lover of Front 20's Secretary, or leader) it was Duterte himself that took a Government helicopter to actually go out and pick up the three wounded fighters. He then had all three flown to Davao City for lifesaving treatment while hundreds, neigh thousands of Duterte's own constituents are too poor to even purchase Tylenon to ease the rigours of child birth.
During the Cristmas Season of 2010 Duterte and Mayor Carpio actually travelled the NPA's regional camp on the outskirts of Davao City's Paquibato District. The NPA has no qualms about capturing mayors and yet Duterte neglected to even bring a single bodyguard. As he said then, he and local guerilla leader Leonicio "Ka Parago" Pitao are "old friends." How much more apparent was it when on, August 29th, 2011, Duterte had supper with NDFP Peace Panel Chairperson, Luis G.Jalandoni. Jalandoni extended an invitation- which Duterte accepted without reservation- to serve as a Resource Person on the NDFP Peace Panel. Normally anyone serving in Government would blanche at such an offer. For one thing, it contravenes the Philippine Constitution and violates at least three laws to say nothing of the serious ethical breeches that would ensue. Anyone even considering such an offer would spend days (at least) consulting both with his or her attorneys as well as well as with Manila. The normal course of affairs a mayor, or vice-mayor, would have to consult the DILG, or the Department of the Interior and Local Government for its guidance and indeed, its permission. Duterte though? The next morning he giddily sent out a Group SMS (a text to all Philippine journalists "approved" by him personally) explaining that he had happily accepted the offer at supper.
On the Sunday morning edition of Duterte's two weekly television shows, "Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa" ("From the Masses, to the Masses" in Cebuano, aka the Bisaya Language) he explained just why he always acts as the pointman when the NPA captures Government personnel but NEVER does so when private citizens are taken by the Maoists, or at least tried to...Vis a vis the six door to door salesman from Misamis Oriental Province who were taken by the NPA's Front 88 of the Northcentral Mindanao Regional Comittee on August 10th, 2011, just before they crossed into Davao City's Paquibato District from the municipality of San Fernando in Bukidnon Province. According to Front 88 the six men:
1) Nelson Bagares
2) James Maybaylan
3) Ronald Boiles
4) Ernesto Callo
5) Segundino Dailo Jr.
6) Julieto Sarsabo
are spies. As "proof" the NPA ridiculously points out that all six men sold sleeping mats (most rural Filipinos don't use beds) and were deep in the bush where settlement is very sparse. Ergo, why would six men congregate in an area where even one man would be hard pressed to sell even two mats in an entire day? Moreover the NPA says, some of the men were telling people they encountered that they were ex-NPA themselves and trying to seduce locals into discussing the NPA in hopes of gleaning intelligence. In my post focusing on the initial abduction of these six men I noted that it was the forbear of the Northcentral Mindanao Regional Committee that was single handedly responsible for the murderous NPA purges that began with Kampanyang Ahos (the Garlic Campaign) in 1985 and soon spread across the entire nation. As I noted then, it seems that the NPA hasn't learned much from its garish mistakes.
The wives of five of the men (only Julieto Sarsabo had noone representing him) travelled to Davao City in late August to personaly beg Vice Mayor Duterte to intercede with his NPA comrades (pun intended) to seek their husbands' safe release. On the show in question Duterte explained that he could not seek the mens' release because he is no longer "objective." Of course Duterte has never been objective when it comes to the NPA, least not since 1988, but his excuse fails to explain why- to my knowledge- he has never once interceded on behalf of private citizens. So, his joining the NDFP Peace Panel now allows Duterte to abdicate his sworn responsibilities to the citizens of the Philippines. I wish I could say that I was shocked or suprised but unlike Duterte, I cannot lie.
However, even I was suprised when Duterte said the following, in Bisaya, "Dili maayo tanawon sa tawa nga moduwa ko ba, mogunit ka sa politikanhong pag-istorya tapos maneuvering sa NPA ug asa positions. That isn't smart." Idiomatically, in English, "I must stop interceding on the part of NPA prisoners because it would be unethical if I continued doing that. Moreover, if I keep travelling to NPA positions in order to intercede, the OTHER SIDE (emphasis is ALL mine) to track my movements and in that way compromise NPA encampments. That isn't smart." So now the Government Duterte has sworn to defend and uphold is "the other side"? I admit, his gall left me dumbfounded. He belongs on the AFP Order of Battle as much as any NPA leader, with a value equal to Ka Parago.
As if all that isn't jaw dropping enough, on the following Sunday, on that same show, Duterte back pedaled furiously saying the following while speaking in English, "One thing I can assure you, I am a Government employee and I swear to defend the Constitution of the Government of the Philippines. I will never, never, and never give an advice that may destroy our land [sic]." Of course Manila had reacted to the preceding Sunday's comments but not nearly as much as it should of. The ignorance represented by Duterte swearing he will never act against the Constitution even as he officialy declares himself aligned with the NDFP, an entity sworn to contravene that same Constitution is beyond words.
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