PEACHI

[Sahrì💃 @roseplazo]

Nice read👊
By: Jollyboy V Aquino

Yesterday, I was watching the impeachment proceedings when a notification suddenly popped up: Vice President Sara Duterte was holding a press conference.

Out of curiosity, I left the impeachment proceedings and focused instead on the press conference.

There, the Vice President directly addressed the allegations of dismissed police officer Rodulfo Gracioso Jr., presenting photographs, travel records, timelines, and other documents to dispute specific claims about her whereabouts and alleged transactions.

But strangely, after a while, I became less interested in the details of the rebuttal.

I found myself watching her.

And I asked myself:

How does someone remain this composed after being at the center of so much political turbulence for so long?

For more than a year, Sara Duterte has been at the center of an extraordinary political storm—the arrest and detention of her father at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, an impeachment trial, political confrontations, and now another serious development: the allegations of Rodulfo Gracioso Jr.

The pressure has come in waves, one after another.

Yet when I watched her yesterday, what struck me was not the volume of the accusations.

It was the apparent steadiness.

She didn't look haggard or visibly overwhelmed. There was little outward indication of someone carrying the weight of everything happening around her. She looked firm and composed, still occupying her place in the political landscape.

And her story reminded me of another vice president, Jejomar Binay, who was once leading the presidential preference surveys and was also confronted by a series of political accusations. But his experience unfolded differently. The sustained political pressure appeared to take a toll on his political standing, and eventually, his numbers faded.

Sara Duterte's trajectory, at least for now, appears to be a very different one.

And I had this thought in mind: How come?

Why, in spite of everything, does her support remain so difficult to shake?

After the press conference, I saw something on Facebook. At an event she attended, a sizeable crowd turned up, calling her name, asking for photographs, and showing their support.

And again, I found myself asking: Why?

What is it about her that keeps people coming back?

What keeps people showing up and cheering?

And more importantly, what makes that connection remain so strong despite the political turbulence surrounding her?

And then there are the surveys, which make that observation even more interesting.

Recent presidential preference surveys show Sara Duterte maintaining a strong lead over the other possible contenders.

And that brings me back to the question.

What keeps the support alive?

Is it the Duterte name—or what some have called the “Duterte magic”?

The strength of her regional base?

The loyalty of people who already identify with her political camp?

A perception that she is being politically targeted?

The absence of a single alternative capable of consolidating those who oppose her?

Or is it something about Sara Duterte herself—the way she carries herself, responds under pressure, and maintains her political presence?

Perhaps it is a combination of these.
Perhaps it is something else entirely.

But for now, one thing is difficult to ignore.

The storm is loud.

The accusations keep coming.

Yet the political force remains.

And that leaves me with the question that started this whole reflection:

What is the magic that keeps Sara Duterte standing through the storm?

CTTO📸: JollyboyVAquino/fbpost
#SaraDuterte💚 #VPindaySaraOnTrial⚖️ #GodSaveThePhilippines🙏 #ProtectThePhilippinesFromEvilCorruptPoliticians #ProtectThePhilippinesFromEvilCorruptLegislators

[⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖Eliza Duterte ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪艾丽莎·杜特尔特 @ElizaX11235813]

Drama lang ung AOI😅

Also fave ko talaga Pag sinasabi nya "my question is...

But actually this is my question...".🥰😂

[Malou Tiquia @maltiq]

This

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@_katrinadomingo @bongbongmarcos Do not even follow this girl. Idol nya c BBM

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@srsasot_ 😂😂😂

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

Louder

[Mark Lopez @MacLopez769]

Bakit walang collective outrage ng sambayanang Pilipino sa mismanagement, abuse of power and plunder ng current administration?

Because mainstream media is not accurately reporting the situation, is not asking the right questions, and is actually enabling and amplifying the narrative.

Because the oligarchs who control media are in bed with powers-that-be.

[Mark Lopez @MacLopez769]

Bakit walang collective outrage ng sambayanang Pilipino sa mismanagement, abuse of power and plunder ng current administration?

Because mainstream media is not accurately reporting the situation, is not asking the right questions, and is actually enabling and amplifying the narrative.

Because the oligarchs who control media are in bed with powers-that-be.

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@EL_FlLlBUSTERO These are trying times..Be scared be fearful. The current admin is manjpulating the political narrative to mask the real problems we are facing. Gising Pilipinas.

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

Marcos regime and here we are again

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@ABSCBNNews @HarleneDelgado Ayuda legacy

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@gmanews May crisis na nga tau. Ginagasto nyo pa ang pera ng taong bayan sa impeachment drama nyo na alam naman ng tao ano yan. Ung bilyon bilyong ninakaw sa gobyerno wla nga managot dahil ano? May bayad ba??? Atupagin nyo ang permanen solution sa crisis na ito.

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@Jjcruz2 Kala mo walang crisis. Meron meron. Wag lagee high.

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@newswatchplusph Sa lahat ng mga sinabi nya 20 peso na kilo ng bigas, ICC, etc ngaun pa ba maniniwala sa knya kung ang ordinaryo na mga tao nararamdaman na mataas ang bilihin

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@ABSCBNNews Ilang percent lg nag tricycle???? Hindi naman yan major mode of transpo. Ayuda lg ba talaga ang solution???!!!!

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@barista101 Normaaal????? Ang bilyon bilyong ninakaw cguro normal din para sa kanya.

[Dalagang Pilipina 🇵🇭 @fierceLady08]

Ang linaw ng eskplanasyon ng gasboy... pero Presidente nyo naintindihan nyo ba? 😂😂😂

[Lady Duterte @Imyour__lady]

WORD SALAD 😂😂😂

Ctto

[TishaCM🌷 @TishaCM]

Duterte maintained the country’s gold reserves steady. Marcos sold them—at less than half of today’s market value.

Duterte initiated the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in 2021 to buffer PH against global shocks, Marcos killed it—leaving the country in limbo amid a massive energy crisis.

No foresight. No vision. No leadership. Just an utterly inutile performance through and through.

[PEACHI @chiandpia]

@MILEYjna Making bawi cguro after the losses in the election?? But people are wise enough to know now. When its too obvious.

[p🕒d💿k @pdokprodo]

Grabe paghanga nila kay 'tayDigong👊👊👊 ❤️❤️❤️

Malaking Pagkakaiba sa Panahon ngayon, Kabaliktaran lahat ang nangyari at nangyayari sa pamumuno ni BBM.. Namulubi ang Bansa naghikahos ang Mamamayan.