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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is fighting an attempt to impeach him as the struggle for power in Southeast Asia's second most populous state intensifies. A crucial player is a former police officer who claims he was involved in many killings, including those of two of his own brothers. He says he was part of a death squad that acted under orders from the President when he was Mayor of the southern city of Davao.
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Mr. Duterte's camp have dismissed the claims as character assassination, but a small group of legislators is using them in an effort to oust the President after less than a year in office, in which his bloody drug war has made world wide headlines.
I agree that it's a difficult endeavour, but it's not impossible. And we already have a historical basis for that. Back in 2000, when President Estrada was impeached, he was, I believe, way more popular than President Duterte is right now. And he also controlled Congress. But somehow things happen. Let's call it political miracles. And political miracles happen in this country. So we'll just have to wait and see.
Few expect Mr. Duterte to be toppled for now, but this is unlikely to be the end of allegations against him over his hard-line policies. Michael Piel. Financial Times. Manila.
