ZCZC
BFF-50
PHILIPPINES-POLITICS-VOTE
Philippines votes in polls expected to strengthen Duterte
MANILA, May 13, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The Philippines voted in polls Monday
expected to tighten President Rodrigo Duterte’s hold on power, opening a way
for him to deliver on pledges to restore the death penalty and advance his
effort to rewrite the constitution.
More than 18,000 positions were at stake, including half of the seats in
the upper house Senate, which has served as a bulwark against some of
Duterte’s most controversial policies.
Duterte is known internationally for his foul-mouthed tirades and deadly
drug war, but remains hugely popular among Filipinos fed up with the
country’s general dysfunction and leaders who have failed to fix it.
He wants to bring back capital punishment for drug-related crimes as part
of his narcotics crackdown, in which thousands of alleged pushers and users
have already been killed by police.
His tough-on-crime platform — which also includes lowering the age of
criminal responsibility from 15 to 12 — was key to his landslide election
victory in 2016.
“If you agree with me then you can vote for my candidates,” Duterte, who
was not on the ballot, told reporters after casting his vote.
“If I am repudiated by the loss of all my candidates… that’s that”, he
added.
Polling stations were officially to close at 6:00 pm (1000 GMT), but hours
later most were still open due to delayed opening or a late rush in a nation
where some 61 million were registered to vote.
– ‘I support the drug war’ –
The electoral commission said no official results can be expected before
it convenes on Tuesday afternoon and final returns in all races could take
days.
Turnout was steady throughout the day and voters across the country flooded
social media with images of their ink-stained fingernails, which are daubed
blue as a protection against voter fraud.
“I voted for many of the candidates endorsed by President Duterte because
his government is doing its job,” voter Myrna Cruz, 51, told AFP in Manila.
“I support their programmes, including the anti-drug campaign… but I wish
the bloodshed would stop,” she added, echoing many Filipinos’ nuanced backing
of the crackdown.
The polls saw isolated outbursts of violence, which is not unusual in the
Philippines’ frequently bloody competition for elected posts.
At least 20 people were killed and 24 wounded in election-related violence
in the run up to the vote, according to an official count.
The military said nine people were shot and wounded Monday during a
confrontation at a polling station on the restive southern island of Jolo,
which is home to insurgents and powerful local clans.
The violence is more frequent in lower level races and will not likely be a
major feature in the election’s main contest for the Senate.
Winning a Senate majority, something that independent national surveys
indicate is well within reach, would give Duterte legislative backing for his
anti-crime proposals and his plan to rewrite the constitution.
Historically, the nation’s 24 senators — who serve six-year terms — have
had a reputation for being more independent-minded than the lower house.
“It’s in the Senate where you have had some semblance of institutional
checks on President Duterte’s worst instincts,” analyst Richard Heydarian
told AFP.
The opposition warns constitutional change could lead to the single-term
limit for the presidency being lifted, allowing Duterte to prolong his rule
despite his repeated statements that he would stand down at the end of his
mandate.
It would also allow him to expand his internationally condemned anti-drug
crackdown by bringing back the death penalty, a pledge that the UN Human
Rights Council said caused it “deep alarm”.
The Philippines outlawed capital punishment in 1987, reinstated it six
years later and then abolished it again in 2006.
– Heir apparent –
Duterte, 74, hit the campaign trail to get his supporters into the Senate,
giving two-hour speeches at late-night rallies and routinely insulting
opponents.
Even if the presidential term limit is not lifted, the Duterte family
looks well-placed to prolong its political power.
The president’s daughter Sara — eyed by some as the president’s potential
successor in the 2022 vote — is running to keep her post as mayor in its
southern bailiwick of Davao city.
Her younger brother Sebastian is running unopposed for the city’s vice-
mayoral seat, while Duterte’s eldest son Paolo is standing for a seat in the
lower House of Representatives.
BSS/AFP/RY/1958 hrs