THE BREAKUP of the UniTeam tandem – the shaky political marriage of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte-Carpio that brought them to the pinnacle of power – gave birth to a new faction that can only be characterized as another menace to democracy and basic decency.
This bloc, originally the “Duterte Diehard Supporters” because of their undying love for everything Duterte, is positioning itself as the “new opposition.” With an eye on the 2028 elections, it crowned the vice president as its leader and promised to be a thorn in the side of the president.
Though the UniTeam tore itself apart because of attempts to amend the Constitution to extend Marcos’s hold on power, fundamental differences in responding to China’s belligerent behavior at the West Philippine Sea might have been the final straw.
The new anti-Marcos bloc, faithful to former president Rodrigo Duterte and craving anew for the strongman leadership of drug war infamy, rues that the Philippines has drifted away from the time when it kowtowed to China and that it seeks to mend its frayed relationship with the United States.
Their anti-democratic inclinations, however, disqualify them from taking up the mantle of the opposition, not to mention their brazen deference to China against an overwhelming tide of public support for alliances with like-minded countries, including the US, to defend the Philippines’ sovereign rights.
Duterte’s henchmen are spearheading a wave of propaganda in support of China’s aggressive tactics. Last year, a study by data forensics company The Nerve found that vitriolic bloggers supportive of Duterte had amplified pro-China sentiments on social media since 2018.
Duterte partisans are also fueling disinformation by flaunting jargon and academic credentials to project legitimacy, the report said.
For instance, a think tank called the “Integrated Development Studies Institute,” which has a history of attacking media organizations critical of Duterte, has peddled false narratives beautifying China’s image not only on social media but also on television (SMNI) and newspapers (The Manila Times).
The disinformation operation benefits China by driving a wedge among Filipinos who have been largely united in their anger over numerous episodes of boat-ramming and water-cannoning at the West Philippine Sea, and Duterte’s sycophants are all but willing pawns in Beijing’s campaign.
Other Duterte supporters have resorted to classic fearmongering. The Koalisyon ng Mamamayan Kontra Giyera (Citizens’ Coalition Against War) falsely insinuated that the Philippines would become the “Ukraine of Asia” if its alliance with the US persists, as the maritime dispute boils into a “proxy war” between the world’s two superpowers.
“We strongly reject, as the world must reject, the false narrative that China has acted as ‘a naked aggressor’ in these non-lethal incidents,” the coalition’s manifesto stated.
Former Duterte officials have also muddled the administration’s foreign policy.
Lawyer Harry Roque, Duterte’s mouthpiece from 2017 to 2018 and 2020 to 2021, divulged in March that his principal had entered into a “gentleman’s agreement” with President Xi Jinping of China to maintain the status quo over the contested waters. Roque maintained that it was not a secret deal.
Former presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo eventually talked to Duterte, who denied that such an agreement existed. Whoever spread such a story, Panelo said, probably wanted “publicity for himself.”
Marcos, horrified by the compromise, urged former Duterte officials to provide clarity. “Ipaliwanag niyo naman sa amin para alam namin yung ginagawa naman. We still haven’t got a straight answer,” the president told reporters on April 10.
The parade of disinformation, alarmism, and accusations perpetrated by the so-called new opposition is triggered by a desperate attempt to maintain relevance amid the return of the Marcoses to power.
Perhaps this thirst for the spotlight fuels the bloc’s full-throttled defense of embattled Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, who allegedly facilitated nefarious operations inside the compounds of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
“Kinokonsidera ko na parang underdog masyado itong si Alice Guo na parang binu-bully ng ating mga politiko,” Roque said in his Facebook page on May 23.
Despite misgivings about the new opposition, it would be difficult to cross them out of the political landscape. An Octa Research poll published on April 8 found that 20 percent of Filipinos still backed the Dutertes, while the Marcoses were 11 points ahead.
Filipinos should wake up to the lies that this “new opposition” peddles daily and in a coordinated manner. The country cannot return to the Duterte era marked by thousands of drug war deaths and acquiescence to China under the false pretense of economic cooperation.
This bogus opposition should be vigorously opposed.
