Joma Sison sees Duterte’s downfall soon

LUCENA CITY – Exiled Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Maria “Joma” Sison said President Rodrigo Duterte’s plummeting approval and trust ratings amid the soaring prices of basic commodities, arrest of top opposition leader, disgruntled elements in the military and the formation of groups opposed to the administration, would hasten the end of the Duterte administration.

“I expect that all those factors will stimulate and accelerate the rise of the various forms of struggle and the realization of the broad united front for ousting the tyrannical corrupt Duterte regime,” Sison said in an online interview from his based in Utrecht, The Netherlands on Wednesday.

He said Mr. Duterte himself would provide the trigger for his eventual ouster from power.

“Like a crackdown on the supporters of Trillanes (Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV) in the military, the replacement of Robredo (Vice President Leni Robredo) by Bongbong Marcos as vice president or some other flagrant abuse of power,” Sison said.

Results of a Pulse Asia survey released on Tuesday showed the President’s approval and trust scores declining 13 points and 15 points, respectively, although a majority of Filipinos still approve of his work and expressed trust in him.

The President’s approval rating stood at 75 percent and trust rating at 72 percent, both his lowest since September 2016.

His ratings fell among all socioeconomic classes but particularly among the poor cut across geographic areas.

Mr. Duterte’s lowest survey rating comes amidst soaring prices of basic commodities that hurt especially the poor, who spend a big part of their earnings on food.

The political front also faces unpredictable turmoil with the arrest of Trillanes, the most virulent critic of Mr. Duterte, on revived rebellion charges.

The Makati court allowed the senator to post bail for his temporary freedom.

On Monday night, President Duterte also made the claim that some government soldiers were conniving with the Liberal Party and the communist rebels as part of the so-called “Red October,” an alleged plot to oust Duterte from power.

Sison said the so-called Red-Revolution plot “is a figment of Duterte’s imagination.”