The drug war czarina

“What is the task ahead? Obviously gargantuan. Even the President made the mistake of thinking the menace could be rid in six months.

I know Vice President Leni Robredo personally. She and I stayed in the same dormitory in the University of the Philippines for freshmen, the Kalayaan residence from 1982 to 1983. We were both 16 years old then. While I would not say we were close friends, my best friend then, the late Rep. Rodel Batocabe, was from Bicol and he was instrumental in my knowing VP Leni beyond being greeting acquaintances. She has not changed much although many of us, her schoolmates and former dorm mates, are both surprised and happy for her political success.

I had the chance to confer with her shortly after we were both proclaimed winners in the 2016 elections, she as VP and I as a member of the 17th Congress. There were four of us from the dorm who were proclaimed as elective public officers, including Representatives Kit Belmonte and Batocabe. Although the occasion was a testimonial in her honor by her dorm mates at Kalayaan, I had the occasion to advise her to break free from her Liberal Party mates observing that the LP was a thing of the past. She did not take my advice. She was graciously given by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte the same title that VP Binay had, the Housing portfolio. I opined that all she had to do was to deliver as Binay did, and 2022 would be in the bag for her. She opted to listen instead to the advice of her partymates and almost committed political suicide when she became the leader of the opposition against a very popular president. The rest is history. She has almost half of the approval rating of the President.

Fast forward three-and-a-half years later. Although offered partly out of spite, PRRD appointed her to be the anti-drug czarina after she again criticized the anti-drug war of the administration.

Almost all of her partymates at the moribund LP advised her against accepting a post intended to “ridicule” her. Her spokesman all but said that she would reject the offer. But lo and behold, VP Leni accepted the post, contrary to the advice of her partymates.

In my mind, the VP had finally done what I thought she should do all along: stand her ground and ignore her partymates. True, the President offered her the position partly because of his irritation of her recent tirades against the drug war. But knowing the President, it was really an expression of exasperation that despite all efforts, the drug lords remain. It’s as if the President told the VP, “Eh di ikaw na lang nang malaman mo kung gaano kalala ang problema (Why don’t you handle it so that you would know the gravity of the problem).”

The yellows too know the extent of the problem. This must be why they advised her against accepting the offer. They probably thought that it was a no-win situation since judging by the experience of Mexico and other countries with the drug malaise, the war is far from being over. But I’m glad the VP accepted. We do not know if she can help win the war against drugs. But at least now, she can go beyond criticizing and walk the talk, so to speak.

What is the task ahead? Obviously gargantuan. Even the President made the mistake of thinking the menace could be rid in six months. Today, with access to intel, the President knows that it’s going to be a long, drawn-out war. Unfortunately, as in all wars, there will be collateral damage. Perhaps, the VP can help ensure that we minimize as much, as we can this collateral damage.

In any case, I am also intrigued by talk of the yellows that the VP’s designation as

anti-drug czarina means that she has returned to the Cabinet. I do not think so. In my time in the Palace, there has always been the head of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency recognized by law as the anti-drug czarina. He is not a Cabinet member and he did not attend even once any of the Cabinet meetings where I was present. If at all, the VP’s new appointment would probably entitle her to attend the monthly command conference that the President has with the top echelon of both the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. That would give her access to the most classified information on the ongoing drug war, information which I had access to which also made me conclude that bloody as it were, the drug war could not be fought any other way.

It helps that in replying to queries on whether the international community should be involved, the VP has said that our domestic processes should be allowed to function. This is encouraging.

VP Leni’s decision to accept the post of drug czarina will surely break or make her plans for 2022. PRRD has given her the ultimate opportunity to be her own person and shine to the electorate. This is an offer that does not come every day, especially after all the nasty things that the VP has said against the President. Let’s see how she will be up to the challenge.