5 Fearless Predictions for Philippine Politics for 2018

It’s less than 2 weeks before we welcome the New Year, 2018. For us Filipinos, 2017 has been colorful, and challenging for the government. With President Rodrigo Duterte leading the country for one and a half years, it appears that more Filipinos are getting used to his style of leadership, although of course we don’t expect the Opposition to do so.



So far, the worst part that Filipinos had to endure this year is the Marawi crisis. There are still reports of extra judicial killings (EJKs) related to drugs, but many Filipinos are now convinced that it is being done by the drug personalities themselves. Meanwhile, below are our own fearless predictions for the Philippines for 2018, in terms of politics.

#1 LP to introduce fresh but ‘weak’ senatoriables

As we all know, the mid-term elections will be held in 2019, and therefore political parties will be preparing their candidates next year. So far, only the incumbent senators who are eligible for reelection are poised to win. For PDP-Laban, President Duterte’s political party, it appears that whoever their candidates are will have a strong edge. On the other hand, Liberal Party (LP) is set to introduce new senatoriables, such as Akbayan Rep. Gary Alejano. But so far, we find them weak and are unlikely to win.

#2 Impeachment complaints vs Sereno, Morales to push through

Yes, it appears that 2018 is the last year in service for Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales. Apparently, both of them are not in good terms with President Duterte. As we monitor the latest development of the impeachment complaints filed against them, the complainants are so persistent, and majority of the Senate and Lower House are now allies of the president.

#3 Cases vs PNoy, ex-officials to pile up

Last Thursday, former President Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino III faced the Senate probe into the controversial Dengvaxia dengue vaccine. According to him, none of his former cabinet members (especially former Health Secretary Janette Garin) informed him about the issues against Sanofi Pasteur’s Dengvaxia vaccine. But since he approved the vaccine, political analysts believe that he should be held liable. And unfortunately for PNoy, he is also facing as graft charges over the Mamasapano operations.

#4 Bongbong Marcos to be declared vice president

The election protest of former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. against Vice President Leni Robredo is now moving forward in favor of the former senator. So far, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is on the process of decryption of the ballot images, beginning with Camarines Sur. This comes a week after Andres Bautista resigned as Comelec chief. With that, political analysts believe that Bongbong Marcos will be declared vice president before 2018.ends.

#5 CBCP will be ‘friendly’ with President Duterte

As early as the 2016 election campaign started, the CBCP (Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines) has been criticizing President Duterte. In return, the president is slamming them back. However, things are very likely to change in 2018. This is because Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles is now the CBCP president. And as we all know, Valles is a friend of the Duterte family, and he knows how to deal with him.



And yes, we at Philippine News Courier believe that the Duterte administration is on the right path in extending Martial Law in Mindanao for the entire 2018. With his decision, we think that the NPA rebels will be weaker, if not totally eliminated. And while we are also for peace in Mindanao, we think that Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Joma Sison is not serious with the peace talks, and therefore should not push through.

Contributed by Renato Pasayao