Author: DAVAO TODAY

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In Full Control


Using his unmatched political savvy, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has kept the City Council under his thumb.

By Germelina Lacorte
davaotoday.com

DAVAO CITY ? A few months ago, war erupted at the City Council. It was between a large group of people identified with Mayor Rodrigo Duterte against a smaller group of people identified with Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.

Duterte was not pitting these people against each other. It was just that these feuding groups were dying to please him.

But far from undermining Duterte’s influence on the City Council, the feud only tightened his hold on it. This display of power over the legislative branch has once again highlighted the reality that, in this city, Duterte is in full control.

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2005: A Year of Mayhem and Trepidation

2005 proved to be as tumultuous a year as the years past. It began with grisly violence as the vigilante-style killings in Davao City continued to claim victims even as Davaoe?os welcomed the new year with optimism. Indeed, violence, mayhem and murder dominated the news in Davao for much of the year.

There was also a strong sense that, despite the assurances from the authorities that terrorism was being checked, the city was becoming increasingly insecure. There were the usual debates, both the relevant (whether Mindanao should become a separate republic) to the almost comical (whether a sordid replica of the statue of David be allowed to greet strollers at a waterfront).

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