Phenomenal.
That’s how the local chapter of the Partido ng
Demokratikong Pilipino-Laban (PDP-Laban) described the political rally of
presidentiable candidate and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and his
running-mate Sen. Alan Cayetano, in Bohol province last Sunday, April 3.
Duterte and Cayetano were warmly welcomed by
Boholanos as if they were Bohol’s favorite sons.
Supporters called the visit “redemption,” “Duterte
festival,” and “Duterte phenomenon.”
In Ubay town, where Duterte and Cayetano arrived at
past 3 p.m. on Sunday, a crowd of 10,000 greeted them at the town’s gymnasium.
 |
A sea of people at the Duterte-Cayetano rally in
Tagbilaran City, in Bohol province, last Sunday (April 3). Presidentiable
candidate Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has drawn remarkable seas of
humanity to many of his high-energy rallies in Ubay, Tagbilaran and Panglao
towns. Leo Udtohan/Chronicle
|
Ubay, about 113 km from the capital city of
Tagbilaran, has a voting population of 40, 803 and is the largest in Bohol’s
second district.
At past 6 p.m., the tandem arrived at Tagbilaran
City, about 113 km from Ubay, where their supporters waited for them.
Residents lined up the streets chanting “Duterte,
Duterte,” as the mayor peeped through his car window waving and greeting the
people.
The tandem paid a courtesy call to Bishop
Leonardo Medroso of the Diocese of Tagbilaran. They also met priests and
seminarians at the Priests Home in the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary (IHMS)
compound. Duterte also visited lawyer Victor dela Serna, his mentor at
San Beda College.
Roads around the Tagbilaran City Square were closed
to traffic starting 2 p.m. An estimated crowd of 30,000 were already at the
venue at around 3 p.m.
Traffic flow was moderate and manageable, according
to the Tagbilaran City Police Station. At least 20 policemen secured the
premises, along with SWAT members.
At 6 p.m., the crowd swelled to 60,000, an event
really unexpected since Bohol is touted as bailiwick of the Liberal Party (LP).
During the rally, actor Cesar Montano sang his own
composition to show support for Duterte. The supporters were singing along with
him for the last few lines.
Cayetano told the crowd that the Department of
Tourism will be transferred to Cebu and a department of Fisheries will be
created in Visayas. He also rallied to create more and better jobs and raise
incomes to enjoy the benefits of a growing country.
In his speech, Duterte reiterated his vow to stop
crime, illegal drugs and corruption in government within six months of his administration.
He cited illegal drugs as the root of all evil and
warned druglords and their runners to watch out.
“Pagbantay mo kay pusilon mo nako (Be careful, I
might shoot you),” Duterte said. The crowd cheered.
Illegal drugs continue to hound the province
despite numerous operations and significant accomplishments from law
enforcement agencies.
He also pushed for federalism, not only to end the
decades-long secession in Mindanao but to bring progress across the
Philippines.
“What Duterte did, he just shook Bohol,” said Lito
Alagadmo, 38. He said he attended the rally to support Duterte.
"He's a breeze of hope totally different from
traditional politicians. He is focusing on solving the problems of our country
that I think many Filipinos want to hear," said Hazel Panlita, 35, who
attended the rally with her friends.
"I've been to several political rallies
through the years and never I have seen enthusiasm as displayed here
tonight," added Panlita.
Not everyone was a Duterte fan.
Lilia Yorong, 46, from barangay Bool, Tagbilaran
City attended the rally.
“I’m not a Duterte fan. I support Liberal Party but
I eventually like to hear more specifics on how Duterte would achieve his
goals,” she said.
Often drawing laughs, loud applause and sustained
cheers from the crowd, Duterte hasn't shied away from attacking his
rivals, and he kept the heat on Sunday, criticizing Roxas, Poe and Binay, saying
they had no specific plans of action on how to solve criminality, poverty and
illegal drugs.
“I can talk about stopping corruption, I can talk
about suppressing criminality. I can even kill the drug lords,” the
tough-talking mayor said.
Duterte also proclaimed the official PDP-Laban
provincial bets (Senior board member Dionisio Balite for vice governor,
Donald Sevilla for board member of the first district of Bohol, et al) and
local bets (Arlene Karaan and her slate in Tagbilaran City, et al).
The rally in Tagbilaran ended at 9:30 p.m. but
Duterte and Cayetano proceeded to nearby Panglao town for another rally where
at least 20,000 people were waiting for them.
Dr. Doloreich Dumaluan, PDP-Laban Deputy
Secretary General for Visayas and PDP-Laban provincial chair, expressed
confidence that Duterte and
Cayetano will gather victory in the province in the May 9
presidential elections.
“We will promise 65 t0 70 per cent Boholano votes
for Duterte and Cayetano,” said Dumaluan, who is also running for mayor
in Panglao town.
Bohol, touted to be a bailiwick of the ruling
Liberal Party (LP), has a total number of 798, 768 registered voters.
"The enthusiasm is spreading like wildfire.
People are supporting Duterte of their own volition because they believed he is
the catalyst for real change,” he said.
He said the people find Duterte’s platform
relevant.
“People are tired of our corrupt system. Besides
the corrupt system, we see problems on poverty, drugs and criminality. And we
don’t like anymore that our lives are being controlled by the Imperial Manila.
If Poe, Roxas and Binay will win, it’s still the same. But Duterte is offering
federalism, "he said.
"We want change. Duterte is a man of word. He
will walk his talk. We saw him in Davao, we saw he is a principled man,"
he added.
He added another factor is that the Duterte’s
grandmother from Saligumba clan was from Bohol.
Dumaluan said that PDP-Laban didn’t worry about
Bohol as Liberal Party country with incumbent Gov. Edgar Chatto as the ruling
party’s head.
Dumaluan also urged his party mates all over
the province to consolidate and solidify its forces behind Duterte and
Cayetano.
He said there were candidates who obtained
their certificates of nomination and acceptance (Cona) from
PDP-Laban including Loay Mayor Rosemarie Lim-Imboy who is running for Bohol
governor against Chatto and former Carmen Mayor Conchita Toribio-delos Reyes
who is running for representative in third district of Bohol against Rep. Art
Yap, dumped Duterte in favor of United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) standard
bearer Vice-President Jejomar Binay.
At least 20,000 supporters, wearing blue and red
shirts with Duterte’s face and name on it, have gathered at the Panglao gymnasium
as early as 4 p.m.
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