Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte


's six-year tenure as the 16th President of the Philippines began on the noon of June 30, 2016, succeeding Benigno Aquino III. He was the first president from Mindanao, the first president to have worked in all three branches of government, and the oldest to be elected. As mandated by the constitution, his tenure ended six years later on June 30, 2022, and was succeeded by Bongbong Marcos.
He won the election amid growing frustration with post-EDSA governance that favored elites over ordinary Filipinos. Duterte began a crackdown on illegal drugs and corruption, leading to a reduction in drug proliferation which caused the deaths of 6,600 people. His administration withdrew the Philippines from the International Criminal Court after the court launched a preliminary examination into alleged crimes against humanity committed during the crackdown. On March 11, 2025, Duterte was arrested by the Philippine National Police and Interpol after a warrant was issued by the ICC for the alleged crimes during his presidency. The confirmation of the charges is scheduled on September 23, 2025.
Duterte increased infrastructure spending and launched Build! Build! Build!, an ambitious infrastructure program. He initiated liberal economic reforms, including reforming the country's tax system. He also established freedom of information under the executive branch to eliminate corruption and red tape. Additionally, he granted free irrigation to small farmers and liberalized rice imports with the Rice Tariffication Law.
Duterte implemented a campaign against terrorism and signed the controversial Anti-Terrorism Act. He declared martial law in Mindanao during the Battle of Marawi and extended it for two years, the longest period of martial law in the Philippines since Ferdinand Marcos' 14-year rule. He pursued peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines but cancelled them in February 2017 after attacks by the New People's Army against government forces as justification and declared the CPP-NPA as a terrorist group. He created task forces to end local communist armed conflict and for the reintegration of former communist rebels, and enacted a law establishing the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region and granting amnesty to former rebels.
Duterte implemented free college education in state universities and colleges and institutionalized an alternative learning system. He also signed the automatic enrollment of all Filipinos in the government's health insurance program and ordered the full implementation of the Reproductive Health Law. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he initially implemented strict lockdown measures, causing a 9.5% contraction of the gross domestic product in 2020. However, with the economy gradually reopening, the GDP increased by 5.6% in 2021.
Duterte sought improved relations with China and Russia and reduced dependence on the United States. He took a conciliatory stance toward China, setting aside the controversial Philippines v. China ruling on South China Sea claims.
Duterte is a polarizing figure, facing criticism and international opposition for his anti-narcotics efforts. Various poll agencies such as SWS, PUBLiCUS Asia, and Pulse Asia consider Duterte's approval ratings to have remained high during and after his presidency, according to their own polling, making Duterte as the most popular post-People Power Revolution president.

Election, transition, and inauguration

Duterte, campaigning on a platform of fighting crime, corruption, and illegal drugs, won the 2016 presidential election with votes, defeating Liberal Party leader Mar Roxas by over 6.6 million votes.
On May 9, 2016, the Congress of the Philippines declared Duterte the winner of the presidential election. Duterte's transition team was organized after he led by a significant margin at the unofficial count by the Commission on Elections and the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting. The transition team prepared the new presidential residence and cabinet appointments, and held meetings with the outgoing administration.
On June 30, 2016, Bienvenido L. Reyes, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines and fraternity brother of Duterte, inaugurated Duterte as the sixteenth president of the Philippines in a simple ceremony held in the largest room of Malacañang Palace in Manila. This was the fourth inauguration to be held in Malacañang and the first since the establishment of the Fifth Philippine Republic.

Administration and cabinet

On May 31, 2016, a few weeks before his presidential inauguration, Duterte named his Cabinet, which consisted of former military generals, childhood friends, classmates, and leftist politicians. Following his presidential inauguration, he administered a mass oath-taking for his Cabinet officials, and held his first Cabinet meeting on June 30. He appointed his long-time personal aide Bong Go as Special Assistant to the President to provide general supervision to the Presidential Management Staff.
During his tenure, Duterte appointed several retired military generals and police directors to the Cabinet and other government agencies, stating they are honest and competent. He initially offered four executive departments to left-leaning individuals, who later resigned, were fired, or rejected by the Commission on Appointments after relations between the government and the communist rebels deteriorated. Duterte fired several Cabinet members and officials who were linked to corruption but critics accused him of "recycling" people he fired when he appointed some of them to other government positions. Stating he is not an economist, Duterte appointed several technocrats to his Cabinet, which he relied upon for economic affairs.

Judicial appointments

Duterte appointed the following to the Supreme Court of the Philippines:

Chief Justice

  1. Teresita Leonardo-De Castro - August 28, 2018
  2. Lucas Bersamin - November 28, 2018
  3. Diosdado Peralta - October 23, 2019
  4. Alexander Gesmundo - April 5, 2021

    Associate Justices

  5. Samuel Martires - March 6, 2017, July 26, 2018.
  6. Noel G. Tijam - March 8, 2017
  7. Andres Reyes Jr. - July 12, 2017
  8. Alexander Gesmundo - August 14, 2017
  9. Jose C. Reyes - August 10, 2018
  10. Ramon Paul Hernando - October 10, 2018
  11. Rosmari D. Carandang - November 28, 2018
  12. Amy C. Lazaro-Javier - March 7, 2019
  13. Henri Jean Paul Inting - May 27, 2019
  14. Rodil V. Zalameda - August 5, 2019
  15. Edgardo L. de Los Santos - December 3, 2019
  16. Mario V. Lopez - December 3, 2019
  17. Samuel H. Gaerlan - January 8, 2020
  18. Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla - July 16, 2020
  19. Ricardo Rosario - October 8, 2020
  20. Jhosep Lopez - January 26, 2021
  21. Japar Dimaampao - July 2, 2021
  22. Midas Marquez - September 27, 2021
  23. Antonio Kho Jr. - February 23, 2022
  24. Maria Filomena Singh - May 18, 2022

    Major activities

Speeches

  • Inaugural Address
  • First State of the Nation Address
  • Second State of the Nation Address
  • Third State of the Nation Address
  • Fourth State of the Nation Address
  • Fifth State of the Nation Address
  • Sixth State of the Nation Address

    Major acts and legislation

Duterte signed into law 379 bills in the 17th Congress; 120 of these laws were national in scope while 259 were local. In the 18th Congress, Duterte signed into law 311 bills, of which 119 were national and 192 were local.

Executive issuances

The Official Gazette lists 176 executive orders, 1,401 proclamations, 53 memorandum orders, 98 memorandum circulars, 48 administrative orders, 20 special orders, and one general order issued by Duterte.

National budget

Leadership style

Duterte is known for his authoritarian leadership style and man-of-the-people persona, characterized by fiery rhetoric and controversial, off-the-cuff speeches. His spokesperson and advisors frequently had to interpret and clarify his remarks. Some observers expressed concern that his statements may have been misconstrued as government policy. He was also criticized for his sexist jokes and low tolerance for dissent. Duterte believed an "iron fist" was needed to instill discipline and cultivated a public image of a father figure Tatay Digong, who instills order and discipline within the nation. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he imposed community quarantines and used the military and police to enforce social-distancing guidelines. Scholars coined the term "Dutertismo" to refer to Duterte's style of governance and the illiberal and radical elements of his presidency.
Duterte has been called a populist for his rejection of titles and casual attitude. He has issued an order prohibiting the use of honorifics for himself, his family, and his Cabinet members. He often chewed gum in public and wore casual attire for formal occasions, saying he dresses for comfort and not to impress anybody. His informal and unaffected attitude attracted support from many Filipinos. Duterte described himself as a night person, typically starting his working day at 13:00 or 14:00, and calling for news conferences that began at midnight.

First 100 days

During his first 100 days in office, Duterte issued an executive order on freedom of information and sought to resume peace talks with communist insurgents. He also formulated a comprehensive tax-reform plan and led efforts to pass the Bangsamoro Basic Law. Additionally, he sought to streamline government transactions and launched the nationwide 9–1–1 rescue and 8888 complaint hotlines. He also established a one-stop service center for overseas Filipino workers and increased the combat and incentive pay of soldiers and police personnel. Internationally, he took actions to limit the number of visiting US troops in the country and had contact with China and Russia to improve diplomatic relations.
Duterte launched a campaign against illegal drugs resulting in the arrest of 22,000 suspects, surrender of 731,000 people, and deaths of 3,300, half killed by unknown assailants. He criticized the Catholic Church and the international critics, including US President Barack Obama, the US government, the United Nations, and the European Union, who condemned his tactics.
After the September 2 bombing in Davao City killed 14 people, Duterte issued Proclamation No. 55, officially declaring a "state of national emergency on account of lawless violence in Mindanao".