by Chito A. Fuentes
PAGADIAN CITY – Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will be arriving in this city Monday to fulfill a promise he made just over a month ago.
Duterte was scheduled to speak at a multi-sectoral forum on “Peace and Order, Insurgency, Economic Development and Political Reform” at the Saint Columban College (SCC) gym last Jan. 26.
His trip was aborted by heavy rainfall at the Pagadian airport which made it impossible for his plane to land.
The private plane which flew him to Pagadian from Zamboanga City circled the airport three times but the extreme weather conditions prompted the pilot to abort the landing.
Supporters and sympathizers who prepared a warm welcome for him both at the airport and the SCC gym were clearly saddened but were pleasantly surprised when Duterte’s voice was heard sometime after the aborted landing was announced.
Immediately after landing at the Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao, Duterte took pains to relay his personal apologies to the people who wanted to hear him speak.
Speaking through phone-patch, Duterte assured his Pagadian audience that he will push through with his visit.
On Monday, Duterte will honor that promise.
Among those who will welcome the mayor at the airport are his fraternity brother, lawyer Paul Jumawan and Barangay Captain Matt Nian.
He will pay a courtesy call on Gov. Antonio Cerilles at Balay Timuay where he will also be treated to lunch.
At 1:30, Duterte will speak at the federalism forum at the SCC gym which was organized by the Mayor Rodrigo Duterte movement, the same group that invited him last January.
He will briefly meet with local supporters before flying back to Davao.
A lot of things have changed since the mayor’s aborted trip.
While he has consistently declined the calls for him to run in next year’s presidential elections, Duterte has become a legitimate contender according to poll surveys.
Duterte tied for third with Mayor Erap Estrada behind the faltering Vice President Jejomar Binay and Sen. Grace Poe in the last Pulse Asia survey.
Mindanao came out strong for its most prominent political leader when Duterte topped the polls with 35 percentage points, the highest rating in the said survey.
Duterte again tied for third, this time with Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas behind Binay and Poe in the Social Weather Stations poll less than a month later.
Both surveys were held when Duterte was merely starting with his listening tours which have taken him to various parts of the country.
While his strong showing in Mindanao and most of the Visayas is expected, the huge and warm turn-outs in different parts of Luzon has surprised even rabid supporters.
Duterte’s track record in turning around Davao City from a virtual basket case in the early 80s to the top five economies among cities in the country has titillated not only businessmen but virtually all sectors of society.
His firm and uncompromising stance against crime is the main reason why Davao is now considered the fourth safest city in the world in contrast to its violent reputation as the country’s version of the killing fields.
Add to that his graft-free reputation and proven competence, it is no wonder people insist to prod him to run in spite of his protestations.
Duterte has tried to tone down his speaking engagements saying he is merely pushing for federalism, but most of the time he leaves his audience gasping for more.
The man who only agreed to become the “face” of federalism has now been catapulted to the threshold of a presidential run by those who see him as the best card in a country that has run out of options. (CHITO A. FUENTES)
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