PLAYING “CAT AND MOUSE” WITH THE PUNISHER
We played a little game with the office of the famous Mayor Duterte of Davao City while we stayed there for 3 days. His reputation has reached us in Thailand and I guess the whole world knows who he is because Time Magazine made a feature on him too.We were told that tourists or any strangers entering “his” city are followed, checked and to some extent -- investigated. We wanted to know if this was true. We also wanted to see if we can get his attention (and hopefully meet him).
Vehicles entering the city limits are “followed” by men on motorbikes (usually 2 or 3) to note the license plate. This information is passed on to an “info center” via walkie-talkie and do a background check on the owner of the vehicle. If you’re clear, the men disappear as fast as they appeared. Isn’t it creepy?
There was this man who tossed a cigarette butt out his car -- He was apprehended of course. He was taken to Mayor Duterte and he himself made the poor man eat and swallow the ciggie butt he threw out his car! *Whoa!* Yummy!
Mayor Duterte goes about the city on his Harley, unescorted. He walks the narrowest and darkest alleys unafraid. He never lost an election and he certainly got the respect of the citizens of Davao City. AND – he certainly got the curiosity and interest of Eurasians from the Kingdom cross the seas.
About the little game I was talking about? – We hired a car and let Tommy drive us around breaking every single traffic rule (all minors, of course). Me and Sofia smoked ciggies and tossed it out the car when we see a policeman. We asked Morgan to get off and pee on a light post near the intersection (but he wasn’t able to pee, too many cars passing by. LOL). We did these stunts at least 3 times…
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*Photo courtesy of Time Magazine.
12 Comments:
LOL! I don't think you will catch Mr. Duterte's attention by doing all those stuff. Good thing you were'nt apprehended by the policemen. Try the ever-reliable "joke bomb" at Davao Airport 'coz this will surely get you an appointment at the Mayor's Office in no time. :)
LOL! You guys are brave bastards! =)
No, guys. I doesn't work that way. He has his eyes on certain group of undesirables. For all you know, they were watching you and just shrugged it off because you guys look like crazy foreigners anyway. Haha!
you people really like to pull other people's strings, dontcha? just be careful.
You are all cracy, Pisanu. Just don't let us hear that you ran into some trouble again over there huh!? You never learn.
When is this "travelogue" gonna end? */yawn/
Where's the Zamboanga posts? It's youre 2nd day there. Any update?
Sounds like fun! :) HAHA!
I kinda fancy tough men. Is he gorgeous? Have more pics? ;-)
Interesting story here. Cheers.
oh, talking about Our Mayor, Davao city Mayor rodrigo Duterte has imposed a city wide liqour ban from 2am to 6am. and YES store owners (even little sarisari stores) follow this ordinance. Liquor ban means LIQOUR ban in this city. No one dare defy our Mayor's Laws. I remember one TV Journalist said in nat'l TV that in "Davao City, you can try to violate the constitution and get a way with it but not Mayor Duterte's Laws-Not while he is still the Mayor"
and Davao is the only Smoke Regulated City in the philippines. which means u can't smoke just anywhere. i remember one Maguindanao Congressman being apprehended for smoking in a non smoking resto. Hahaha. Good for him eh...
Oh, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim once said that if we have hundreds of mayor like duterte, the philippines will be a better place to live in.
oh, Pisanu, have u heard about the DDS or the Davao Death Squad? its a vigilante group that kills drug addicts, rapists, and thieves in broad daylight, during the year 200-2004 in this mindanao city. and since then, crime rate in this city has greatly decreased. The mayor is said to have created the DDS. But it is yet to be proven.
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