When the kitchen feels the crisis
Filipinos are resilient. We always find ways to cope. But we shouldn’t have to keep surviving problems that could have been prevented. We deserve leadership that plans ahead.
Contributor Archives
The noise of VP Sara’s silence
Sara Duterte’s silence in the House may be the loudest part of her 2028 positioning. Every unanswered question signals to supporters that the current administration is illegitimate. Every delay reinforces a narrative of persecution.
The mouth that roared: Rodrigo Duterte’s rhetoric on trial
Can a head of state be held accountable not only for what he did, but also for what he said? In the end, it may not be a secret memo or a taped call that will bring down “the Punisher,” but the echo of his own voice.
Day 3 of confirmation of charges hearing: Kaufman challenges link between Duterte speeches, killings
It is not enough simply to assert that Rodrigo Duterte said outrageous things, and that deaths occurred, and so, as a result, he must be criminally responsible - Kaufman
Day 2 of confirmation of charges hearing: Prosecution details killings, victims warn of ‘plague of impunity’
Prosecutors played video clips and cited transcripts of Duterte’s speeches in which he issued his “kill, kill” orders, promised to shield police from prosecution and assured them they would not go to jail for actions taken in the drug war.
Day 1 of confirmation of charges hearing: Butuyan warns of return of Duterte impunity if ICC won’t confirm charges
Joel Butuyan: Truth is the antidote to the virus of impunity, Your Honors. The victims dread a future where charges are not confirmed. It will mean that the virus of impunity will continue to spread and infect many more.
The Duterte drama at The Hague: Too weak to stand, but strong enough to snub
Is Duterte too frail to remember, or simply too defiant to face the music? Even his own prosecutor has described him as an “unreliable historian” of his health. He adjusts the story as needed. The “sickly” act is a shield , one that spares him the gaze of mothers and children who lost loved ones in the drug war, some of whom have traveled to The Hague seeking justice. By remaining in his cell, he preserves the tough-guy image for supporters back home.
From lawmakers to law-evaders: A Senate in crisis
A fractured Senate is a weak Senate. If leaders are busy managing internal conflict, the chamber cannot effectively serve as a check on the Marcos administration or as a counterweight to the Dutertes. Instead of focusing on laws and oversight, senators are distracted by survival
Evasion is not a defense
Calling the charges “baseless” does not make them disappear. Declaring them “political” does not answer them… Until the vice president confronts the allegations directly and fully, the issue will not fade into politics. It will remain a matter of responsibility left unresolved.
A ruling that reshapes the road to 2028
In the end, the question is not merely whether Sara Duterte can run in 2028. It is whether the country is prepared to confront the tension between political power and legal accountability, and what it means when the two collide long before a single vote is cast.
