Now comes Mr. Duterte with a ready pen and his enthusiastic signing of the tuition-free college law. But then, Mr. Duterte can tout his landmark programs for social amelioration. We are not talking here of Hugo Chavez but the traditional strongmen, from Mr. Pinochet to Mr. Trump. For a president with the full instincts of a strongman, Mr. Duterte is of a different category, an outlier. On social amelioration, he is for a strong, activist state such as free college and other major programs for the underclass.

Source: Manila Times August 15, 2017 16:52 UTC