The big news in Philippine politics last week was the impeachment of VP Sara Duterte by the House of Representatives, with at least 215 congress members signing the petition. This made the petition bypass the Justice Committee, and proceed to the Senate for the impeachment trial. The Senate has accepted the impeachment documents but adjourned for recess until June, due to the mid-year election on May 2025. Unless a special session is called by President BBM or Senate President Escudero, the impeachment trial will start in June 2025.
The fight between BBM/Marcos and the Dutertes have been ongoing since last year and simmering. This impeachment move is an escalation which may favor the BBM/Marcos side or the Duterte side depending on strategic/tactical developments. These are when/where the hyperbole, paradox and irony are/will be in play.
Figures of speech are words or phrases that use non-literal meaning to create a particular effect. Many politicians use them to exaggerate, to hide true intent, or to be able to deny/backtrack on their words. Ex-president Duterte was always claiming that his statements were “hyperboles” or exaggerations which should not be taken seriously, and/or he was joking. VP Sara explained that her pronouncements/attacks/threats against BBM, the first lady and Speaker Romualdez were exaggerations/misquotations. The lawyers/defenders of the Dutertes, like Panelo and Bato de la Rosa allege that their statements were/are hyperboles and metaphorical and should not be taken literally.
The charges in the articles of impeachment against VP Sara Duterte, which included betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, violation of the Constitution, and threats against the president, the speaker and the first lady will be denied, defended and cited as hyperboles and metaphors. In the ongoing trolls social media war between the two camps, the Duterte camp is making light of the charges, claiming exaggerations and comparing the sins of the Dutertes as lesser/minor compared with the Marcos family record in Philippine politics and governance. VP Sara once said that all politicians are corrupt. So, an honest politician is an “oxymoron”.
However, there is a more important figure of speech in this fight between the BBM/Marcos and the Dutertes, and it is the “irony” of the situation and eventual conclusion. The Unity Team of BBM/Marcos and the Dutertes, which made them win the 2022 presidential election has disintegrated and now they attack each other. Given that they had more contrasting than common interests, the way forward really was cooperation. The more compelling irony is that for BBM/Marcos to succeed as president and redeem the Marcos name and legacy, he and his administration has to reverse, contradict, and repeal all the initiatives and actions of ex-president Duterte. BBM has repudiated Duterte’s war on drugs, the pro-China policies, and went after the abuses of the Duterte allies in and out of the government. The BBM/Marcos camp is now perceived by the opposition and civil society as the lesser evil that, if push comes to shove, they will probably side with the BBM/Marcos camp.
This is like a morality play with divine intervention, in that the BBM/Marcos camp has to take the moral high ground. They have to lead and implement “good governance” and really do good for the Filipino people and for the country. The fight against the Dutertes is just an incidental event toward winning the hearts and minds of the Filipinos which will be the ultimate victory.