Illustration by RENE ELEVERA
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte again hogged the headlines this week when the regional political party she founded, Hugpong ng Pagbabago (Hugpong), took the country by storm, recruiting thousands of new members, not only in the Davao Region, but also in provinces as far as Luzon. Although the mayor maintained that her political party remains regional, Hugpong managed to make its presence felt in Metro Manila where she signed an alliance with eight political parties outside Davao, before proceeding with a recruitment spree in the provinces used to be known as the Solid North.
Among those that attracted allies to her party and which make the party seem formidable, is its policy of allowing recruits to keep their original party membership, while helping them forge local alliances. More politicians are expected to sign up.