Thursday 7 July 2011

DUTERTE: A Leadership Theory




by Earlie Doriman
Mayor Sarah Duterte of Davao City, Philippines
Like most Filipinos who understand and prefer hands-on, non-traditional politics, I could only agree that Davao City  Mayor Sara Duterte did the right thing at the right time – well, she only punched the sheriff, nothing-more-nothing-less. Although her actions were not the most acceptable attempt of a public official especially to the envious eyes of her rivals and to the exaggeratedly condemning society, but she has practically showed that she is not amongst those traditional political leaders who just love to appear upright and blameless before the media, and when cameras are at them.

Punch the Sheriff
I was at first flabbergasted to see the video clips showing the lady mayor threw more than two hard punches at the sheriff who led the team of early morning demolition in Agdao Davao City.  If you did not know the whole story prior to the incident, you would right away denounce the act, consider it irresponsible, dub it as abuse of power and authority, and certainly you would express your disgust over and again.
Flashflood in Davao City claiming
more than 30 lives
Yet,the video clip was only a quarter of the whole story. If the sheriff should have been a little selfless and thoughtful and waited for the lady mayor to arrive, the untoward incident could have been avoided and a peaceful resolve could have been laid up perfectly. The mayor was moving here and there attending to the more heartbreaking situation in another area. The city was in crisis due to the flashfloods two days before the demolition and as a responsible public servant, Mayor Sara Duterte, hardly had a rest, hurdled sleepless nights, disregarding her own interests to provide relief services and commitments to her many broken people. Being a hands-on mayor, she personally met affected families and bereaved constituents as more than 30 Davaoenos perished in the floods.
What's in view after the flashflood
on the night of June 29, 2011
If the sheriff had only waited for two hours as requested by the mayor, there could have been no riot and fighting between the poor residents, the policemen,and the demolition team. What is two hours to secure nonviolent demolition? If he only listened to the mayor that she would help him execute the demolition peacefully for she knew the people respect her voice and authority, it could have been an entirely different scenario. But we could only sigh in regret for it happened nonetheless.
By now you must have realized what triggered the mayor to do a thing which she knew very well could put her name and reputation at stake, she being a public servant and a lawyer herself. She is just human who would also fail in her rational judgment at exceptional circumstances. If we would insist that being a public figure she must have conquered herself with deep sense to control her emotions, then we must chastised many of our congressmen and senators, who are more unbecoming and unethical fighting over personal issues and attacks in the house of representatives and in the senate. It is more disgraceful to see them behaving badly before the cameras with no genuine battle to fight, at least for Mayor Sarah it was an authentic fight even men of her position are afraid to confront.
The Media and CHR
Marco Polo Hotel, one of the finest
hotels in Davao
Strangely enough, many have supported Mayor Sara Duterte for the courage she is made of and for her eccentric dedication as a public official. She lives and continues the legacy of her father to making Davao City the most peaceful and best place to live in the Philippines, and it does make sense to me why Davaoenos and many people who know Davao well enough would say that the Dutertes have extremely make a difference in their governance and the progress that the city is known for provides that visible proof.
As always in the Philippine setting, broadcast media have overly magnified the issue, making it appear that the mayor of Davao City is nothing but a bunch of war freak, which to me is simply callous and preposterous. They don’t know the Dutertes and they don’t have any single credibility to make such allegations. Quick to say, they have not truly understood the whole sense of it or more closely some journalists are ignorant of their own ethics to completely miss their objectives - reporting the issue fairly and squarely. The Commission of Human Rights (CHR) comes into the picture and their officials make it emerge they are deeply concern about the human right violations committed by the mayor.
It just made me wonder why couldn’t they just invest their time to numerous and more serious human rights violators who do not only punch an erring sheriff but also murdered, killed, and exploited innocent people. Isn’t that more intelligible and worth the office? I am so disappointed at how mediocre most of the television reporters who instead of giving facts and exact information to the viewing public, they themselves were biased and too subjective of the issue. How in this world you become a journalist if all you do is stir up or ask leading questions?
Davao City Hall of Justice
There were how many hundreds of deadly demolitions in Luzon and Manila, where mayors and congressmen hid under the skirts of their wives or mistresses and surfaced when the violence was extinguished to only wash their hands from faults and gross negligence. Is that not unbecoming of a public servant whose primary function is to protect his people? That is a shame without comparison.
Strong Leadership
Former Davao City Mayor Rodrigo
Duterte, father of Sara Duterte
I have always been impressed by the leadership of the Dutertes in Davao. Their headship has transformed Davao City from a weakling, NPA-infested, Nicaragua-like city of the past to a progressive and one of the most peaceful and livable cities of Asia of the present. It is astounding to imagine how Davao City has evolved from a sick killing field of the 80’s into safe haven for tourists and locals, where peace and order is comparably superior to any other city in the country.
As to how the Dutertes successfully reconfigured the system and the local government of Davao is every politician’s envy, insecurity, and interests. The traditional politicians could not simply do it because they are not valiant enough to implement policies to effect real change. Moreover, most political leaders in the country would choose to maintain favourable reputation to future elections rather than achieve electoral trust by serving and leading unconventionally like the Dutertes.
Unfortunately, the Philippines is infested with loads of traditional politicians ( called TRAPOs). From the highest seat of the president down to the lowest unit of the barangay, traditional politics is almost synonymous to culture and way of life. Exceptionally, Davao City has the Dutertes who spearhead Davao to its present glory. They are not TRAPOs and they keep the city’s peace and order, progress, and unity at its best level.
Duterte as a Leadership Theory
The central problem in the political system of the country is the presence of leaders whose philosophy of leadership is as rusted as the ruins of the old wars, the principle which was only effective in the pre-modern world where leadership means that a leader must be served by the people and that their being a leader provide them the opportunity to take, to acquire personal status, to take advantage at the expense of others, to corrupt as long as they want. Leaders who have no balls to confrontation and could not even defend their constituents. Leaders who have so much with words, but do so little with useful actions. This kind of leadership is a sham and continues to exploit and take advantage of the ordinary citizens.
The People's Park of Davao City
In contrast, the Duterte leadership is adaptive and responsive to the changing culture and attitude of its contituents, it takes responsibility of its actions and make its people the central concern. It is anchored on the principle of discipline, commitment, responsibility and compassion. Whilst it is not the best leadership style of the modern world, it is effective in creating positive change and progress. It is equally effective in building a peaceful society.
Apo View Hotel, one of the first hotels of Davao
Perhaps the reason why the Davaoenos have so much respect for the Dutertes is because both Rodrigo Duterte and Sara Duterte have high respect and compassion for its people and its city. Mayor Rody during his term might look and sound so tough and stringent but his heart is full of concern to the poor and the vulnerable. His courage is coupled with sincerity and sensitivity. Yet it is true that he is a ‘punisher’, because he does not provide a place in Davao for those whose intentions are wicked and violent. People of Davao are not afraid of him, unless you are a drug pusher or a drug lord, or perhaps a violator of city ordinances.



When in Davao, you truly have to live like a Davaoeno, a disciplined, law-abiding citizen, and a peace-loving individual. In Dutertes leadership, everyone is empowered but everyone is expected to be responsible of his deeds. If you could not live the good character expected of you, then better yet find another place to go.
Is that leadership a symptom of tyranny? Absolutely not, because the Dutertes are not oppressive unlike the traditional clans of politicians in the country. It is simply based on cooperative governance where the leader is able to connect the expectations to the people and vice versa.
Does it contain colour of oligarchy? Absolutely no, the Dutertes are not the only political leaders of the Davao City, they are just the most effective and well loved by its people. They are not the most powerful family in Davao, they only become the most respected leaders of the City and this has brought about massive progress and life to its people.
This is purely Duterte, a leadership theory based on discipline, responsibility, commitment, courage, and compassion.
As to the punching incident, Aristotle once said that everybody can get angry and that is very easy. But it is very hard to getting angry at the right person, with the right intensity, at the right time, for the right reason, and in the right way. Mayor Sara Duterte at that time just simply had all the requisites to get angry.









20 comments:

  1. Doy kuyaw naman ka mo iningles uy! ayaw baya anhi New Zealand ha kay lupigan na kaayo ko nimo ba. Mawad-an intawon ko ug panginabuhi ngari...

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  2. Hi Chanda,

    Hadlok man sab ta nimo diha..nikalit ra man gud ka..hehehe..I am honestly happy you drop by and jot some notes..

    Ayaw pagsaba kay madakpan ta...second second lang ko nimo..hehehe..Hope you're all fine.

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  3. Hala oi sir..di masagang imong gisulat..wla man kaha ka gibayaran ana?hehehe..joke lng..pro kabalo ka sir,tinood baya dyud na imo gipa nulat..sa tinood lng media ray ga daku sa storya..mentalidad sa uban kabubuhan basta lng may masulat na pwede pag pyestahan sa katawhan..ang media ray daku nga implewensya sa mga tao..kaya ang uban pud tao daw korek,utro pud diay mga bOGO!..di man ko maka duterte pro gusto ko ang leader nila dri sa DAVAO kay ang mga tao disciplinado..I agree,na kung dli ka gusto sa pamaagi sa DAVAO ug dli ka gusto ug disciplina much better not to be here..

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  4. Jaime,

    Kinsa gud ka nga jaime?..hehehehe...purya buyag intawn..wala gyud ko bayari ani..kinasingkasing gyud nako ni nga pagdayeg sa mga duterte..wala na man ko diha pero subaybay gyud ko sa mga kalihukan diha sa davao..hehehe...

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  5. Bow! Well done Earlie :-) Ang media karon mga stupido puro ratings lang giapas. Wala silay responsibitlity sa ilang ginabuhat most of the time. They should remain neutral and just bring the news to the viewers. Biased kaayo! The society kay hypocrites sad as if they have done anything sa atong country.

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  6. Hi Jay,

    Exactly, mga kusog lang mukastigo sa ubang tawo pero wala naghuna-huna nga daghan pud salawayon sa ilang kaugalingon.

    At least si mayor Duterte dako ug nahimo sa katawhan sa Davao.

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  7. we support mayor inday duterte maayo lang to iyang gibuhat ug dapat tanggalon ang mga budget sa hall of justice kay walay pulos dili maminaw ug mayor.......

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  8. if I spat at you, and you hit me, your hitting me will be justifiable before your relatives and friends and maybe others.
    but if we went to court, and I sued you for hitting me, the question will not be WHY you hit me but did you, IN FACT, hit me.
    your reaction towards my having spat at you was against the law, just as what I did was against the law.
    If you went and sued me in a court of law, on the other hand, for having spat at you and therefore defaming you in front of others, the issue will not be the reason I spat at you, but did I IN FACT break the law by spitting at you and defaming you.
    Nobody is denying the Davaoenos the right to have a love affair with their mayor, and vice-versa, and nobody is questioning the accomplishments of Ms Duterte in Davao.
    And certainly, it is understandable that she is in a lot of pressure, both emotionally and physically, because of the deaths of a lot of her constituents.
    However, should this justify her violating law ?
    The late Mr. Marcos, undeniably, had a lot of accomplishments to show during his family's rule in the Philippines, but the Filipino people ousted him, and you in Davao, in fact, had a lot of NPA's in your history and from that background of your history, the Dutertes came into the limelight of your politics.
    Mr. Marcos was ousted because despite his leadership he had trounced the Constitution of the Republic and made jest of its laws.
    If we are going to say "hurray, Inday Sara" when she mauls an officer of the court such as a city sheriff, because of her accomplishments as Mayor, why then did we, the Filipino people, and you Dabawenos, oust Mr.Marcos ?

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  9. Good day Anonymous,

    Thank you for taking time to read and express your own opinion about the incident involving Mayor Sara Duterte and Sheriff Abe Andres. The constitution provides us the right to express oneself, and so like you, my right to put into words what I believe is moral rather than legal is safeguarded by the same provision.
    I can sense that you are very well aware of the whole story that led to that unfortunate incident and obviously you are not a Davaoeno to understand the situation on a plain humane context.

    Your example could be a good answer to an academic assignment but with due respect it is not realistic to get a close comparison to the ‘punching incident’. Taken as a point of argument, your example is only between two stupid individuals who out of an equally stupid reason spat and hit each other – does that concern the public?..No! I might have hit you but the ground was so personal and second class and it could just be a laughing stock in the courtroom. Did mayor Sara Duterte punch the sheriff for her personal interest?..No! It was out of compassion that her people were treated crudely. Now tell me if your example is good enough to equate the situation.

    I understand as well why you could not appreciate the humanitarian reasons she could probably invoke to defend herself because I can see you live by the book of the law and your life has been robotized perhaps by legal terms and decisions. That makes a genuine difference between a leader with both functional heart and head from a leader with only a head above his soul.

    I could not answer you completely about the Marcos dictatorial regime as I was not yet born when he declared the martial law. But I am sure to tell you that Davao was not the sole culprit ( as you probably suggest) of his ouster. It was a collective meeting of hearts, patriotism, and true nationalism that led to the infamous EDSA revolution in 1986, and I was only in Grade 6 at that time. If your point was to compare the Marcos tyranny and dictatorship to that of Dutertes, I don’t think there is even a single similarity to say that Sara or Rody be ousted too or condemned perpetually because they use the same rule. The Dutertes do not apply dictatorship in Davao, albeit strict but compassionate.

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  10. anonymous, comparing the acts and reasons why people ousted Marcos and that "act" of Mayor Sara is kinda absurd. Marcos had been judged to have done wrong to a lot of filipinos and said to be out of personal interest. Mayor Sara is just against one selfish sheriff and did it because of her constituents. and we saying "HURRAY INDAY SARA" is obviously out of your business. it's just Dabawenyos right to praise her, we are just happy to have a good leader.

    how about you anonymous, do you people in your place where ever that is, have a good leader like ours?! :)

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  11. @earlie: man, you're dense.
    first off, why do you have to put others into the defensive by pointing out we're not from Davao ?

    but on the other hand seeing as you Dabawenos condone and justify the use of violence among your public officials instead of demanding that they be an example by resorting to legal means, then I'm glad I'm not from Davao.

    unfortunately, the law does not distinghuish between the grayness of one's brains for it to demand to be honored.

    Assault is assault, unjust vexation is unjust vexation, and defamation is defamation, whether or not the perpetrators and the victims were intelligent, semi-intelligent, dumb, stupid, morons, public officials, private citizens, public entities, private entities, and anything else in-between, the law is the law.

    Ms Duterte broke the law. She assaulted the person of an agent in authority who was performing the duties assigned to him.

    Sheriff Abe, on the other hand, broke no law. There is no law saying that he had to comply with the request of Ms. Duterte to stay the demolition.

    Even if ten thousand angels from heaven appeared to testify that Ms. Duterte was under extreme pressure and undue duress, in mourning for her constituents, having a generally bad day at the time, or had gone to relieve herself 12 times because of loose bowel movement secondary to tension, the fact still remains: she broke the law.

    so, before you try to act intelligent and go and ridicule the opinion of others who have been directly invited to post (jay_pab274 posted check out this site in his twitter account), please investigate the gist of what is being said.

    thank you for your feedback.

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    Replies
    1. to anonymous: for breaking the law, who really did

      ACCORDING TO Sec. 28 of the Urban Development Housing Act (UDHA), the following rules should be observed accordingly by any Local Government Unit (LGU):

      Eviction or demolition as a practice shall be discouraged.

      Eviction or demolition, however, may be allowed under the following situations:

      a. When families occupy danger areas such as esteros, railroad tracks, garbage dumps, riverbanks, shorelines, waterways, and other public places such as sidewalks, roads, parks, and playgrounds;
      b. When government infrastructure projects with available funding are about to be implemented; or
      c. When there is a court order for eviction and demolition.

      In the execution of eviction or demolition orders involving poor and homeless families, the following shall be done by involved government agencies:

      Notice upon the affected families at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of eviction or demolition;
      Enough consultations about settlement with the duly designated representatives (i.e. community leaders) of the families to be transferred and the affected communities in the areas where they are to be relocated;
      Presence of local government officials or their representatives during eviction or demolition;
      All persons taking part in the demolition should have IDs;
      Eviction or demolition shall only be done during regular office hours from Mondays to Fridays and during good weather, unless the affected families consent otherwise;
      No use of heavy equipment for demolition except for structures that are permanent and of concrete materials;
      Proper uniforms for members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) who shall occupy the first line of law enforcement and observe peace and order during the process; and
      Adequate relocation, whether temporary or permanent. However, for eviction and demolition of poor and homeless citizens, relocation shall be undertaken by the local government unit (LGU) concerned and the National Housing Authority (NHA) with assistance of other government agencies within forty-five (45) days from serving of notice from the court. After this period the said order shall be executed. However, also, that if relocation is not possible within the said period, financial assistance in the amount equal to the present minimum daily wage multiplied by sixty (60) days shall be extended to the affected families by the local government unit concerned.
      1. Notice of eviction was issued on JUNE 21 but they proceeded the demolition on JULY 1. Clearly the sheriff violated requirement number 1 for its grace period of 30 days
      2. The day of the demolition was the very next days after DAVAO was hit by a deadly flash flood that killed dozens and displaced thousands. Sheriff Andres violated the requirement number 5
      3. The good mayor asked for an extension of 2 hours as she knew that it is a requirement that she should be there. The moron sheriff violated the requirement no 3
      And finally FYI: ABE ANDRES is a habitual oppressor and abusive
      For those who sympathize this moron , this is for you
      Motto: “Birds of the same feather are the same bird”

      KENNETH HAO vs ABE C. ANDRES, Sheriff IV, Regional Trial Court, Branch 16,Davao City,
      Case no: A.M. No. P-07-2384
      June 18, 2008
      RESOLUTION:
      WHEREFORE, the Court finds Abe C. Andres, Sheriff IV, RTC of Davao City, Branch 16, GUILTY of gross neglect of duty and grave abuse of authority (oppression) and is SUSPENDED for one (1) year and six (6) months without pay. He is also hereby WARNED that a repetition of the same or similar offenses in the future shall be dealt with more severely.
      SO ORDERED

      Haaay, wag kasi satsat lang ng satsat wala nmn palng maibubuga..wag mag talitalinohan kung bobo naman ….
      Pweeeeh….

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  12. Hi Anonymous,

    Thanks for your comments and I respect your opinion.

    PEACE... and God bless

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  13. ug sa dihang naapil akoang twitter diri Earl hahaha. Everyone is entitled to his own opinion. Let's just have respect to one another. After all we have different views on things.

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  14. Jesus Christ Himself violated the law when He perform healing on sabath day. Why do you think at this time the law must be violated? Don't you think there are times in life that need to be done even it mean violating the law? Why this story had been told? To shame the law maker and law follower?
    God who is perfect had seen beyond human can see, that is why this violation of law is blameless to HIM.

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  15. hala ka earlie wala gyud ko nagdahum nga sa cge nako ug pangita ug mabasa sa net kay gilaay ko, nasaag ko sa imo blog. ning deretso gyud ko ug basa sa topic, nadala ko sa discussion kaya before ko nag post ug comment nag pray gyud ko ug I ask wisdom from God nga unta ang akong masulti makatubag kay anonymous kay nakita man gud nako nga murag dili na gusto ang author ug lalis kaya ingon nlng sya na entitled si anonymous sa iya opinion. So after ko naka post namatikdan nako nga naa wrong grammar nako pero kay na post naman dili na nako ma edit. Deretso ra gyud ako pag sulat kabalo ko nga enlighted by the Holy Spirit kaya post dayon. Cge nlng nang grammar kay dili man pud ko hawod ug inengles. Pero tungod ato, nakaingon ko oy hawud baya mag inengles ang author maulaw man pud ko sa akong gi post, kaya niigon ko kinsa kaha ning author. Dinha pa nako gi click kinsa author. Sa akong pagka kurat earlie doriman man diay. Wa gyud ko nagdahum ako diay parente. hahaha mao nay divine intervention. C rachel doriman cosal ko, karon sobrecarey na. I'm writing this here in japan.
    So we know the heart of davaowenyos.
    God bless you all.

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  16. Hi Rachel,

    Thanks a lot for your support. You have just shared a very enlightening example why violating the law is reasonable. Yes indeed, there are many biblical events in which God himself has used force to remind his people about the superiority of the divine law more than any other laws in the universe. And his divine law protects those that are aggrieved and helpless.

    We all respect our constitution and the criminal justice system of our country however bias they seem, but there are circumstances that people in authority should listen to what is right inside his heart. What is legal is not always right and moral. The demolition was right according to the human law, and the mayor did not ask to stop it, she only asked for a little time to keep a peaceful execution of the law. It was a call for conscience and compassion and nothing else.

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  17. to everyone and most especially to anonymous:
    Did you know the entrigue about sheriff Abe which was aired over DXDC-Davao? Thanks to technology anyway, out in the country man tayo o kahit saan sulok ng mundo am/fm can be heard.
    Whether there is truth about it or not, it is something I will just personally ask from freinds who work near the vicinity. I have no intention of discussing and arguing the truthfullness of the matter over here. I know that if it will be brought into court or into any blue ribbon invistagation this topic will surely come out.
    The entrigue is this.... Abe is a shireff na mabilis pa sa alas kwatro when it comes to demolition pag hawak na nya ang budget na P250,000. If demolition will be acted upon, expense will be enumerated in the liquidation, an unexpensed amount is easy for Abe to pocket. Kilala si Abe sa mga kabaro nya sa Davao. This is the reason na hindi ang taga Davao na shireff ang sumoporta sa kanya kundi ang taga manila na di sya kilala.....
    Huh mabigat na paratang to....
    My purpose of putting the entrigue into the picture is to relate it to punching portion.
    Kung tayo kaya ang Mayor....Di kaya mabilis pa tayo sa alas kwatro at sabihin natin... "tarantadong sheriff ka, di ka man lang mapakiusapan ng dalawang oras (sabay suntok at sipa) dahil lang sa pera???? tang.....ka!!!
    Medyo controlado pa siguro c Sarah kay suntok lng abot ni abe.
    I did not inject this scenario to argue if this is true or not. That is a long process to find. What I like to find from you is the feeling and reaction.
    Just focus on the feeling and reaction...take note gi-limit ko ang variable do not argue with the truthfullness of the matter here,.... just to find if we have the same reaction with Inday Sarah....kung nakilala mo na si Abe na ganitong klasing sheriff or have knowledge thru the report of close, trusted and reliable people suntok lang kaya ang aabotin nya sayo? or plus sipa pa para complete.
    This is just something to ponder about feeling and reaction. What I am sure of is that I am not a robot that I can programme my reaction towards a particular stimulus, a programmed acceptable reaction. How about you dear?

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  18. Whoa! Battle of the brainy babbies? I'm reading from my mobile so I had no idea that this blog+comments are gonna make me hungry. Sir dors, kuyawa ba diay nimo manuwat oie. Karon pko kabalo. Bantog daghan kag secret admirers kaniadto. Di nko mo comment further bahin sa topic kay usa ka kilo ra akong english. Peace! ;-)

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