14 June 2025 By Atty Harry  ROQUE Rodrigo Duterte’s Long Walk to Freedom Opinion Piece Atty. Harry Roque 14 June 2025 “I was not a Messiah,” the great Nelson Mandela once said, “but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.”  Today I recall these words of “Tata,” a term of endearment used by South Africans to President Nelson Mandela, which means “father” in Xhosa, as he was held in deep respect within South Africa.  In the Philippines, we have our own version of Tata: former President Rodrigo Duterte, whom Filipinos fondly call “Tatay Digong.” On 19 June 2025, we will observe the 100th day of the former President’s kidnapping and illegal arrest at The Hague in the Netherlands.  Today, 14 June 2025, is a special day for all Filipinos in The Netherlands and all over Europe. We remember Tatay Digong in his long walk to freedom during this year’s celebration of the 127th Independence Day of the Philippines. Our theme is “Kalayaan pa...

11 June 2025 By Lorraine Badoy In the end, these senators- all seasoned politicians - know it: any move against the Dutertes is a move towards their own political obliteration. And they know it because the people - US!- spoke loud and clear.  And yes, an alliance with Marcos and most definitely Romualdez is the most lethal political alliance you can choose for yourself. A perpetual kiss of death because you will know no forgiveness, no mercy from the people. And Inday may be loved, yes. She was swept into the second highest office in the land by a people who ached to give her the highest office in the land. And they gave it to her in RECORD numbers. The highest number of votes anyone running for public office had ever garnered in our entire history.  So yes she is loved and trusted by the people. But Inday stands on the giant shoulders of her father. RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE. She is loved because her father was first loved. And she is trusted by a people who first trusted her fathe...

11 June Wednesday The Senate didn’t delay the impeachment trial of VP Sara Duterte. They rescued the Constitution from being used as a blunt political weapon. And in doing so, they didn’t just pause a proceeding—they handed the House of Representatives, and Speaker Martin Romualdez himself, a reality check signed by the rule of law. I. THE IMPEACHMENT TRIAL THAT COLLAPSED ON ITS OWN WEIGHT Here’s the truth: The fourth impeachment complaint filed against the Vice President might have looked like a show of strength. But constitutionally? It was already dead on arrival. Three complaints had already been filed in 2024. The Constitution is clear—you cannot file more than one within a 12-month period. This isn’t about political loyalty. It’s about legal clarity. And when the Senate reviewed the complaint, they did the one thing the House failed to do: They actually read the Constitution. II. THE HOUSE WASN’T STOPPED—THEY WERE CAUGHT Let’s be blunt: this wasn’t a rejection of accountability. ...

10 June 2025 WELCOME TO THE BLOODBATH Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seatbelts and grab your popcorn. So this, perhaps, is the infamous bloodbath Vice President Inday Sara Duterte warned us about - not with actual blood or violence, but of venomous rhetoric. 🍿👩‍🦰 If an impeachment trial were held today, one could easily imagine the scene: two distinguished legal minds called to the stand- not to accuse, but to clarify the rules of a game that’s long been murky. On one side is retired COMELEC and COA Commissioner Rowena Guanzon, who, ever the firebrand, declared the rules for liquidating confidential funds as “problematic talaga!” Her concern? A lack of clarity and transparency - a long-standing grey area in government budgeting. To her credit, she raised a valid point...a better-defined rules could help avoid political grandstanding in the future. According to her, there is a rule - often overlooked but codified in COA Circular No. 2015-01, issued January 8, 2015. The circular ...

10 June 2025 Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte—our Tatay Digong—is poised to be elected once more as Mayor of Davao City, the very city he transformed into a symbol of peace, order, and progress. A city once feared, now admired. A city that became the launching ground of a presidency that shook the nation into discipline, courage, and pride. Today, as he sits detained in The Hague—not because of guilt, but because of politics—he continues to embody the strength of the Filipino spirit. Even far from home, his story moves, stirs, and ignites. This is more than a political comeback. This is a legacy in motion. This is the voice of a people who never forgot. This is a reminder that we are the State, we are the Voice, we are the Power. We are Filipinos. No prison cell can confine the will of the people. No courtroom can silence a legacy built on service, love, and sacrifice. Mabuhay ka, Tatay Digong. Your people are still with you. And Davao is calling you home. - Duterte Legacy FB

3 June 2025 Soliloquies at The Hague By Jasmin O. Egan I. THE LEADER In foreign halls where silence walks, A voice once roared now softly talks A name entrenched in every heartbeat, In our hearts, where pain and struggle meet. He walked with fire beneath his tread, The fearless one whom tyrants dread. Not for himself, but for the land, He bore the storms with steady hand. Rodrigo stood when others fled, He fought for rice, for roofs, for bread. And now the winds in the Netherlands cry— Where is the man who dared defy? II. THE BOSS He was no king in marble halls, But “Boss” to those in shanty walls. He cracked a joke, he shared a drink, He saw the soul behind the stink. With iron word and gravel tone, He built a strength we called our own. He listened close, he struck down wrong, And in his quiet, we grew strong. A man of dust, of flame, of clay, Whose every word could light the way— To those he served with bleeding pride, He was the Boss, our Mentor and Guide.   III. THE FATHE...