Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte

Notes on Duterte’s Alleged Health Decline

With around 600 days left before his term ends, is President Duterte still fit to lead the country?

License to Kill: The Support of Filipinos for Duterte’s Bloody War on Drugs

It was around 3 a.m. on November 25, 2016 when 38-year old Gener Rondina woke because of a loud banging on his door. A group of policemen surrounded their small house in Cebu City. Gener, a known drug addict and a pusher, knew what would happen next. He quickly rushed to remove the wall air-conditioning…

Duterte’s Balancing Act of Two Superpowers: US and China

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is treading a dangerous path trying to balance two superpowers in his hands: China and the United States. In a recent turn of events, Duterte has decided to retain the military alliance between the US and the Philippines after rashly announcing a “separation from the US” on independent foreign policy during…

USA-PHL: Love and Hate

Let me try to make sense for my millennial counterparts another weeklong rollercoaster ride for the foreign relations of the Philippines courtesy of no less than our unorthodox President Rodrigo Duterte. Super Typhoon Lawin wrought havoc in Northern Luzon, but this was the most surprising news of the week: Duterte announced in a highly anticipated…

Presstitutes?

It’s easy to ditch the media, if you think the institution is biased, corrupt and useless. Regardless of whatever pushes you to make such sweeping generalizations, you can just stop watching, reading, and consuming right now. But you won’t. Because whether you like it or not, the media is just as important as you are…

The Davao Explosion: What I Saw Is Our Country’s Nightmare by Fr. Jboy Gonzales, SJ

At four in the morning on the 31st of August 2016, I flew out of Manila; at a quarter before six, we were hovering over the mountains of Mindanao. When a sliver of morning light illumined the serene landscape of Davao del Norte, welcoming me to my new mission, I said to myself, “This is…

“Bias”

Kababasa ko lang sa isang Facebook thread — gago raw ang media. Biased daw. Paano? We feed you quality shows, and then what? Wala masyadong nanonood. The ratings, likes and shares show. Mas gusto niyong pagpiyestahan ang mga teleserye tungkol sa mga kabit at teenybopper, mga personal na buhay ng mga celebrity at opisyal ng gobyerno, at mga…

Oral Origins 2: Gago and Leche

After discussing Putang Ina and Yawa in the first edition of our special report Oral Origins, our sequel presents two more familiar utterances.

Nanlaban

Ang dali. Ang daling sabihin: “Eh kung ‘di naman kasi sila tamad, kung nagpursige ba sila sa pag-aaral. Kung ‘di sila nag-anak ng apat, anim, siyam. Kung ‘di na lang sila umalis sa probinsya para maghanap ng trabaho sa Maynila. Kung tumanggi sila. Kung ‘di sila adik. Kung ‘di sila tulak.” Ang daling sabihin kasi…

Their Last Moments on Earth

After dusk, when darkness sprawls over the metro — thieves, murderers and drug personalities find their most opportune time to do business. And where these hooligans leave a bloody mess, that’s where my duty as a graveyard reporter begins. The dirty job takes some getting used to. But I’ve never thought that my graveyard shift will…

The Ill-Gotten Health of the Philippines

It takes a lot of courage and willpower to work in public health and development sector.

Oral Origins: The Etymology of Putang Ina and Yawa

SubSelfie.com attempts to trace the history of curses that are usually uttered by our new President. Among these are putang ina mo, putang ina, ‘tang ina and its other derivatives.

“Bury Caesar”

Editor’s Note: This is a direct reply to a recently published article of SubSelfie.com entitled A Hero’s Burial? Dear Alaysa, I read your article detailing the events of how your family ‘suffered’ under Martial Law. It would be preposterous if I say ‘I feel your pain’ and that whatever ‘injustice’ was done is too trivial. I…

A Hero’s Burial?

The incoming president, Rodrigo Duterte, tells us that for those who suffered abuses during Martial Law: “It’s just a matter of distributing the award. So anong problema? Patay na ‘yung tao.” (So what’s the problem? The person is dead.) Well you see, Mr. President-elect, my late granduncle Dr. Johnny Escandor died under the dictatorship — his…

Ethics and Biases: A Post-Mortem of Philippine Media During the 2016 Elections

The votes have been cast. The mudslinging has ended. And while Filipinos are anticipating the dawn of Duterte’s presidency, this may be a good time to reflect on how the media fulfilled their roles in covering the 2016 presidential elections. Journalists who covered the elections and communication professionals who observed from the sidelines took time to step…

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte: Welcome to the Next Six Years

The 71-year-old Rodrigo Duterte from Davao garnered nearly 16 million votes, a six-million margin above the second placer Mar Roxas of the formidable Liberal Party. Roxas stood in front of his supporters and the country and wished Duterte well, the man he called a dictator and whom he attempted to gang up on two days…

The Policies of the Presidentiables

Here is a summary of the major policy points mentioned by the candidates during the second and third legs of the Presidential Debates held in Cebu and Pangasinan respectively. The candidates are listed below according to the alphabetical order of their surnames. Because Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago was absent during the Cebu Debate, we included her positions…