title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte, during his presidential campaign, warned the Philippines was at risk of becoming a narco-state and promised to fight the illegal drug trade. After his inauguration, the Philippine National Police (PNP) launched "Oplan Tokhang", inviting identified drug suspects to surrender. Duterte identified three Chinese nationals who were alleged drug lords in the Philippines, and named 150 public officials allegedly involved in the illegal drug trade.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: At the height of his anti-drugs campaign, Duterte urged the public and communists to kill drug dealers. Pardons were promised to police who shot drug dealers during anti-drug raids, prompting thousands to surrender. Rehab centers were built to accommodate them. Concerns arose locally and internationally due to the high number of suspects who died during police operations. In August 2016, opposition Senator Leila de Lima launched a Senate probe into the extrajudicial killings, using hitman Edgar Matobato of the alleged vigilante group Davao Death Squad as a witness. Matobato testified Duterte, then mayor of Davao City, was involved in extrajudicial killings in the city; Duterte called the allegation a "lie". The probe was terminated on October 13, 2016 for lack of evidence. De Lima was arrested for her alleged involvement in the New Bilibid Prison illegal drug trade.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In March 2017, Duterte created the Inter-agency Committee on Anti-illegal Drugs, led by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, to tackle drug crime. Later that year, a lawyer filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court against Duterte and 11 officials for crimes against humanity.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In October 2017, due to public outrage over alleged police abuse in the continuing crackdown, Duterte prohibited the PNP from joining anti-drug raids and designated the PDEA as the "sole agency" in charge of the war on drugs. The PNP launched a recovery and wellness program for drug dependents in the same month. The PNP was allowed to rejoin the campaign in December 2017 with the PDEA still as the lead agency. In October 2018, Duterte signed an executive order institutionalizing the Philippine Anti-Illegal Drugs Strategy, allowing all government departments, state universities and colleges to implement their own strategies against the illegal drug trade.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte has acknowledged that the war on drugs has been difficult to control due to the country's long coastline and corruption. He asked president-elect Bongbong Marcos to continue the war on drugs in his own way; Duterte declined an appointment offer as Marcos' drug czar, expressing a desire to retire. Despite international criticism, the war on drugs retained majority support among Filipinos. By February 2022, 58% of barangays had been declared drug-cleared as part of the Barangay Drug Clearing Program.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In November 2016, Duterte signaled his intention to withdraw the Philippines from the International Criminal Court (ICC) after an ICC prosecutor said the organization may have authority to prosecute the perpetrators of drug war deaths. Duterte maintained that the Rome Statute, which was ratified by the Senate in 2011, was never binding in the Philippines because it was never published in the Official Gazette. The withdrawal process began in March 2018 after the tribunal's chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, launched a preliminary examination into crimes against humanity allegedly committed by Duterte and other officials in the war on drugs. The withdrawal took effect a year later on March 17, 2019. A Supreme Court (SC) ruling in March 2021 dismissed three petitions filed by the Philippine Coalition for the ICC, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, and opposition senators challenging Duterte's withdrawal from the ICC on the grounds that the petitioners were unable to establish legal standing to challenge the action. The court also ruled that the President has no "unbridled authority" to withdraw from treaties.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On September 16, 2021, the ICC authorized a formal investigation into the war on drugs in the Philippines, focusing on crimes committed between 2016 and March 2019. The Philippine government requested a deferral of the probe in November 2021, which was suspended by the ICC to assess the request. However, on June 26, 2022, ICC prosecutor Karim Khan concluded that the request was "not warranted" and requested the pre-trial chamber of the ICC to immediately resume the investigation.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed the Freedom of Information executive order and created the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission to combat corruption in the executive branch.<ref name="PNAGovPH-UtmostPriority" / He launched the 8888 Citizens' Complaint Hotline, allowing the public to report corruption and poor government services.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: To reduce bureaucracy and processing time, in 2018, Duterte signed into law the Ease of Doing Business Act. A law he signed in December 2020 allows the President to expedite permits, licenses, and certifications during national emergencies.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte had a policy of destroying smuggled luxury vehicles to discourage smugglers. In March 2019, he abolished the Road Board, stating that agency was "nothing but a depository of money and for corruption".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In August 2020, Duterte ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate corruption allegations within the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). On October 27, he ordered the DOJ's investigation and a newly created taskforce to investigate corruption within the government.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Early in his term, Duterte pardoned several communist rebels and political prisoners while pursuing peace talks. He also granted pardons to elderly and sickly prisoners, as well as upperclassmen and graduating cadets from the Philippine Military Academy and Philippine National Police Academy with outstanding punishments and demerits. In November 2016, he granted an absolute pardon to actor Robin Padilla, who was convicted in 1994 for illegal possession of firearms.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In August 2018, Duterte revoked the amnesty of his staunch critic Senator Antonio Trillanes, saying the amnesty that was granted in 2010 by President Benigno Aquino III was void "ab initio" because Trillanes did not apply for it, and refused to admit guilt for his roles in the 2003 Oakwood Mutiny and the 2007 Manila Peninsula siege.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On September 7, 2020, Duterte granted an absolute pardon and early release to US Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton, who was serving time for murdering Jennifer Laude in Olongapo. Pemberton was released due to good behavior after serving less than six years in prison.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In February 2021, Duterte signed an executive order creating the National Amnesty Commission, which was tasked with processing applications for amnesty for former rebels. He signed four proclamations granting amnesty to members of the Moro National Liberation Front, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the communist movement, the Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa ng Pilipinas, the Revolutionary Proletarian Army, and the Alex Boncayao Brigade.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte advocated federalism as a better system of governance for the Philippines, arguing that the Internal Revenue Allotment disproportionately benefits Metro Manila and that he would end his term early if federalism was instated.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On December 7, 2016, Duterte signed an executive order creating a 25-member consultative committee to review the 1987 Constitution within six months. On January 23, 2018, he appointed former Chief Justice Reynato Puno as chairman along with other experts and officials. The committee approved a federal charter banning political dynasties, political turncoatism, and oligopolies, and granted more power to the Ombudsman and Commission on Audit. On October 8, however, the House Committee on Constitutional Amendments passed a new draft of the federal constitution filed by House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, which removed several provisions and eliminated term limits for Congress members, and removed the vice president from the presidential line of succession. The House of Representatives passed the draft, but the Senate rejected it.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Early in his term, Duterte raised the idea of a revolutionary government but later rejected it. He criticized the party-list system and called for its abolition, saying it was no longer representative of the marginalized.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In June 2019, Duterte said federalism might not be established during his presidency. He later said at a democracy summit hosted by US President Joe Biden that he had failed in his bid to establish a federal system in the country due to lack of congressional support.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On June 1, 2021, Duterte issued an executive order for the devolution of some executive functions to local governments.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The agricultural sector was in decline under the Benigno Aquino III administration, but saw 6.3% growth in Duterte's first year. However, despite growth in other sectors, Duterte's administration struggled to revive the farm sector, which has continued to decline.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Inflation in 2018 led to the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) being enacted in 2019, which ended the National Food Authority's monopoly on rice imports. The RTL replaced import limits with a 35% tariff, with revenue going to a Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund to support farmers. Despite criticism, the law gained support from business groups, and retail rice prices stabilized. In 2019, Duterte authorized the Department of Agriculture to use tariff funds for cash assistance to small farmers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed a law easing Commonwealth era restrictions on agricultural patents, allowing land titles to be immediately available for trade. The Sagip Saka Act was signed in 2019, promoting enterprise development for farmers and fishermen to boost their incomes and strengthen the direct purchase of agricultural goods. Certification of organic produce was made more accessible and affordable. In 2020, Duterte provided new agricultural graduates with up to of land to encourage young people to enter agriculture and avoid a farmer shortage.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In February 2018, Duterte signed a law providing free irrigation for farmers owning up to of land, benefiting about 1.033 million farmers by December 2021. In February 2021, a law creating a trust fund for coconut farmers was signed, and in June 2022, an executive order implementing the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan was issued, facilitating the release of ₱75 billion of coco levy assets declared state property by the Supreme Court.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2019, African swine fever prompted the Philippine government to tighten animal quarantine and ban pork imports. Over three million hogs were culled from 2020-2021, causing a supply deficit and higher pork prices. In response, Duterte lowered import tariffs on pork for one year and initiated a repopulation program. On May 10, 2021, Duterte declared a state of calamity due to the continued spread of the disease.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: By July 2021, the Duterte administration had completed of farm-to-market roads and of farm-to-mill roads under the Build! Build! Build! program.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Since 2017, Duterte called for the creation of the Department of Disaster Resilience to administer disaster response and rehabilitation, but the bill was opposed by some senators over concerns about bureaucracy. In 2019, Duterte approved GeoRisk PH, a multi-agency initiative to serve as the central resource for natural hazard and risk-assessment information.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Following the 2020 Taal Volcano eruption, Duterte called for the construction of more evacuation centers in disaster-prone areas; by July 2021, 223 new evacuation centers had been constructed under the Build! Build! Build! program. After typhoons Rolly and Ulysses hit the country, Duterte issued an executive order creating the Build Back Better Task Force, a permanent inter-agency body responsible for post-disaster rehabilitation and recovery in affected areas. In September 2021, Duterte signed the BFP Modernization Act, mandating a 10-year program to modernize the Bureau of Fire Protection and expanding its mandate to include disaster-risk response and emergency management. In April 2022, the government inaugurated three evacuation centers in Batangas province outside the Taal Volcano danger zone.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte inherited from the Aquino III administration a strong economy but limited public-infrastructure investment. He promised to continue Aquino's macroeconomic policies while increasing infrastructure spending through his economic team's 10-point socio-economic agenda. To attract more investors by easing restrictions on international retailers, Duterte signed into law amendments to both the Foreign Investment Act of 1991 and the 85-year old Public Service Act. His administration took initiatives to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by launching a microfinance program as an alternative to predatory private loans and significantly increasing the creation of Negosyo Centers that provide efficient services for MSMEs. To address rising inflation following the devastation caused by Typhoon Ompong in September 2018, Duterte signed an administrative order removing non-tariff barriers on agricultural imports. In February 2019, he signed a law updating the 38-year-old Corporation Code of the Philippines to allow a single person to form a corporation. After several more reforms such as the Ease of Doing Business law, the Philippines' ease-of-doing-business ranking improved from 124th to 95th, according to the World Bank's 2020 Doing Business Report.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused the Philippine economy to enter a recession following government lockdowns and restrictions. Gross domestic product (GDP) shrunk by 9.5% in 2020, prompting the administration to loosen restrictions to revive the economy. GDP recovered to 5.6% in 2021 after the administration initiated a nationwide vaccination drive and eased pandemic-related restrictions; simultaneously, the country's debt-to-GDP ratio rose from 39.6% in pre-pandemic 2020 to 60.4% as of June 2021 due to loans incurred by the government to address the pandemic.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On March 21, 2022, Duterte signed an executive order adopting a 10-point policy agenda to hasten economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. To reduce the country's debt, which rose to ₱12.68 trillion as of March 2022, in May that year, the Duterte administration's economic team proposed to the incoming Marcos administration a fiscal consolidation plan containing corrective tax measures including the expansion of value-added tax to raise government revenues. By the second quarter of 2022, the Philippine economy had grown by 7.4%, making the country the second-fastest growing economy in Southeast Asia.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: To reduce poverty, encourage economic growth, and reduce congestion in Metro Manila, the Duterte administration launched Build! Build! Build!; a comprehensive infrastructure program, on April 18, 2017. The program was part of the administration's socioeconomic policy, which aimed to start a "Golden Age of Infrastructure" by increasing spending on public infrastructure from 5.4% of the country's GDP in 2017 to 7.4% in 2022. In 2017, the administration shifted its infrastructure funding policy from public-private partnerships (PPPs) of previous administrations to government revenues and official development assistance (ODA), particularly from Japan and China. From October 2019, the government worked with the private sector to provide additional funding.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In November 2019, the administration revised its list of Infrastructure Flagship Projects (IFPs) under the Build, Build, Build program from 75 to 100, then to 104, and to 112 in 2020, expanding its scope to health, information-and-communications technology, and water infrastructure projects to support the country's economic growth and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Some major projects included the Subic-Clark Railway, the North–South Commuter Railway from New Clark City to Calamba, Laguna, the Metro Manila Subway, the expansion of Clark International Airport the Mindanao Railway (Tagum-Davao-Digos Segment), and the Luzon Spine Expressway Network By April 2022, 12 IFPs had been completed while 88, which were at an advanced stage, were passed to the succeeding administration for completion.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: From June 2016 to July 2021, of roads, 5,950 bridges, 11,340 flood-control projects, 222 evacuation centers, 150,149 school classrooms, and 653 COVID-19 facilities were completed.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Duterte administration initiated a comprehensive tax reform program. The program's first package the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law (TRAIN Law) adjusted tax rates by excluding those earning an annual taxable income of ₱250,000 from paying personal income tax; the law also raised excise taxes on vehicles, sugar-sweetened beverages, petroleum products, and tobacco and other non-essential goods to generate funds for the administration's massive infrastructure program. The second package, the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE Act), lowered corporate income tax from 30% to 25% to attract investment and maintain fiscal stability. Sin taxes on tobacco, vapor products, alcohol, and electronic cigarettes were raised to fund the Universal Health Care Act, and reduce incidents of smoking-related and alcohol-related diseases. A tax amnesty Duterte signed into law in February 2019 granted errant taxpayers a one-time opportunity to affordably settle their tax liabilities while raising government revenue for infrastructure and social projects.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed a law imposing a 5% tax on gross gaming revenues of offshore gaming operatorss. In March 2019, he signed a law excluding small-scale miners from paying income and excise taxes on gold they sell to the central bank.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On September 2, 2021, Duterte ratified the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement, an ASEAN-led free trade agreement involving 10 ASEAN members and Australia, China, Japan, Korea, and New Zealand; the agreement was sent to the Senate but the Senate's May 2022 election break delayed ratification. In June 2022, the Senate deferred the agreement's ratification to the incoming 19th Congress after some senators raised concerns over the lack of safeguards for the country's agricultural sector, and to provide an opportunity for president-elect Bongbong Marcos to review the agreement.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Stressing that the long-term benefits of education would outweigh any budgetary problems, in August 2017, Duterte signed a landmark law granting free tuition at all state universities and colleges (SUCs). He enacted laws which institutionalized the alternative learning system (ALS); mandated free access to technical-vocational education; granted inclusive education for disabled learners; accorded medical scholarships for deserving students in higher education; established a scholarship program for students on teacher-degree programs; instituted a career-guidance and counselling program for all secondary schools; and created the country's National Academy of Sports in New Clark City. In education curriculum, significant laws he signed included restoring Good Manners and Right Conduct (GMRC) and Values Education in the K-12 basic education; establishing transnational higher education that allows foreign universities to offer degree programs in the Philippines; integrating labor education in the higher-education curriculum; requiring the creation of curricula concerning energy-efficient, sustainable technologies; and declaring Filipino Sign Language as the national sign language and including it as a subject in the curriculum for deaf students.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in mid-2020, Duterte rejected the resumption of face-to-face classes in COVID-19 low-risk areas until vaccines became available in the country, saying he would not risk endangering students and teachers. On October 5, 2020, the Department of Education (DepEd) reopened classes, implementing distance and blended learning. Prompted by the detrimental effects of distance learning on students' mental health, in September 2021, Duterte approved a two-month pilot test of limited, face-to-face classes in COVID-19 low-risk areas; in January 2022, he approved the DepEd's suggestion to expand face-to-face classes.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: By the end of Duterte's term, 1.97 million students in 220 higher education institutions were granted free tuition from the academic years (AYs) 2018-2019 up until AY 2021–2022, while 364,168 grantees used tertiary-education subsidies and benefits from the administration's "Tulong Dunong Program" in the same period.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Early in Duterte's presidency, his administration adopted a "technology neutral" policy in energy and refused to end the use of coal because the Philippines' carbon footprint was not significant compared to those of more-developed Western nations. After Duterte in July 2019 issued a directive to cut coal dependence and fast-track a transition to renewable energy, in October 2020, the administration ended its energy neutrality policy and issued a moratorium on the construction of new coal-fired power plants.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: To improve the electrification and power-generating capacity of the country, Duterte signed a law promoting the use of microgrid systems in unserved and under-served areas, and established the inter-agency Energy Investment Coordinating Council, which was tasked with simplifying the approval process of major projects. The administration pursued the liberalization of the energy sector; in October 2020, the Philippines started allowing 100% foreign ownership in large-scale geothermal projects.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The administration sought new energy sources and partnered with foreign companies to study the use of hydrogen as an energy source. In October 2020, with the impending depletion of the Malampaya gas field, Duterte approved the Department of Energy's (DOE) recommendation to lift the moratorium on oil-and-gas exploration in the West Philippine Sea imposed by President Benigno Aquino III in 2012. In February 2022, Duterte signed an executive order approving the inclusion of nuclear power in the country's energy mix.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In September 2021, the DOE reported the country's energy capacity increased from 21,424 megawatts in 2016 to 26,287 megawatts in 2020, and household-electrification level rose from 90.7% in 2016 to 94.5% in 2020.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change in March 2017. He declared parts of the Philippine Rise as a marine protected area, and significantly increased the number of protected areas in the country by signing the E-NIPAS Act of 2018. Duterte in April to May 2019 escalated a waste dispute with Canada, which led Canada to repatriate tons of refuse it sent to Philippines in 2013 and 2014. Under Duterte's presidency, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) completed the closure of all 335 open dumpsites in the country and subsequently required local authorities to convert the dumpsites into sanitary landfills.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte in May 2017 appointed former military chief Roy Cimatu as the DENR secretary to replace his first appointee, environmental activist Gina Lopez, after the Commission on Appointments rejected Lopez's reappointment; Lopez was criticized following her decision to close 23 mining operations in functional watersheds and suspend six others in February 2017. To boost the COVID-19 pandemic-afflicted economy, in April 2021, Duterte lifted the nine-year moratorium on new mining agreements imposed by the Aquino administration in 2012; Cimatu in December 2021 repealed the ban on open-pit mining on copper, gold, silver, and complex ores imposed by Lopez in 2017. Following Duterte's directive to investigate reports of illegal logging and mining, in January 2021, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary Eduardo Año ordered the Philippine National Police to begin a campaign against illegal logging.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: After incidences of pollution in Boracay island, the country's most popular tourism destination, peaked in January 2018, Duterte in April that year ordered a six-year month closure of the island to address the dumping of raw sewage in its waters. The closure began on April 26. Duterte created the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) to administer the cleanup and later issued an executive order extending the BIATF's term until the end of his presidency to ensure the completion of the cleanup plan. The Duterte administration set a limit of 6,000 visitors per day, based on the island's capacity, following Boracay's reopening to the public on October 26, 2018.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Following the Boracay cleanup, in early 2019, Duterte directed DENR and DILG secretaries Cimatu and Año to initiate the cleanup of Manila Bay, threatening to shut down hotels along the bay if they did not install water treatment systems. Shortly after the cleanup started on January 27, Duterte created the Manila Bay Task Force to hasten the cleanup task. As part of the bay's rehabilitation, in September 2020, the DENR began overlaying crushed dolomite rock on a portion of Manila Bay to create an artificial beach; the move drew criticism from environmental advocates and the opposition but support from the general public. Coliform levels in several parts of the bay significantly declined since the cleanup.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Amid imminent land reclamation projects in Manila Bay in February 2019, Duterte signed an executive order transferring the power to approve reclamation projects from the National Economic and Development Authority to the Philippine Reclamation Authority, which he placed under the Office of the President. Favoring government-related reclamation projects in the bay, he rejected private-sector proposals, citing the damage they would cause to the city. Toward the end of his presidency, he ordered the DENR to stop the processing of applications for all reclamation projects in the country, saying massive land-reclamation proposals are "nothing but a breeding ground for corruption".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte promised to improve the country's health care system, signing several health-related bills into law. The Universal Health Care Act he signed in February 2019 facilitated the automatic enrollment of all Filipinos under the government's health insurance program; by May 2022, over 111 million Filipinos were reportedly covered by these plans. Duterte tasked the Department of Health (DOH) with developing a nationally integrated program to prevent and treat cancer, a leading cause of death in the Philippines. The Philippine Mental Health Law established a national policy to improve mental health services in the country and protect the rights of persons using psychiatric, neurologic, and psycho-social health services. HIV and AIDS health services were made more accessible through a law enacted in December 2018. A law signed in December 2019 institutionalized the Malasakit Center, a "one-stop shop" for health concerns, in all hospitals run by the DOH; a total of 151 centers have been established by May 2022. Smoking in public places was banned, and the use of firecrackers and pyrotechnics was regulated through executive orders issued by Duterte.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed a law establishing a national feeding program for undernourished children in all public schools. He expanded health and nutrition services for pregnant women and all infants during their first 1,000 days. An executive order signed by Duterte created an inter-agency task force to formulate a National Food Policy that included a plan to eliminate hunger.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2017, Duterte launched a ₱1 billion medical program to provide free medicines, prostheses, assistive devices, radiology, and chemotherapy assistance to indigent citizens. It was funded under the Office of the President's socio-civic projects fund. To make medicines more affordable, Duterte ordered a price cap for select medicines; another executive order issued in December 2021 enforced stricter price regulation of drugs and medicines for the leading causes of death in the country.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Following the first confirmed case of "novel coronavirus 2019" in the Philippines, on January 31, 2020, Duterte ordered a temporary ban on the entry of Chinese nationals from China's Hubei province, and in February, he expanded the ban to the whole of China. On March 8, he declared a State of Public Health Emergency throughout the country due to the COVID-19; four days later, he ordered a lockdown in Metro Manila. On March 16, he declared a State of National Calamity for the next six months; a day later, he placed Luzon under Enhanced Community Quarantine, resulting in the temporary closure of borders and, and the suspension of work and public transport. On March 24, Congress passed the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act (Bayanihan 1), which Duterte signed the following day; under the law, the President was granted the authority to realign the 2020 national budget to address the COVID-19 crisis and to temporarily direct the operations of private establishments such as private hospitals, hotels, and public transport.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The administration purchased and distributed medical equipment and supplies. On March 30, 2020, the DOH purchased one million items of personal protective equipment (PPE) worth 1.8 billion for COVID-19 health workers, prompting the Senate to call for a probe on overpricing. On May 20, Duterte took full responsibility for the procurement of PPE, saying he ordered health secretary Francisco Duque III to expedite the procurement of PPE regardless of cost to prevent compromising of the health workers' safety. The DTI also boosted local production of medical equipment through its Shared Service Facility Fabrication Laboratories project.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Amid a Senate investigation that was headed by Senator Richard Gordon of a scandal involving the government's purchase of alleged overpriced medical supplies from Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp., Duterte barred Cabinet members from attending the hearings, which he called an overlong impediment to the government's pandemic response efforts. In February 2022, the Senate draft report on the investigation recommended filing charges against Pharmally and government officials involved in the transactions, including Duterte, on grounds he "betrayed public trust" when he appointed Michael Yang, who was linked to the scandal, as presidential advisor. Duterte ignored the report, saying he would not waste Filipinos' time in reacting to the Senate panel's recommendation. The seven-month-long investigation ended with the adjournment of the 18th Congress in June 2022; the report failed to reach the Senate plenary for deliberation after it was signed by nine senators out of the 11 required signatures. Senators Juan Miguel Zubiri and Sherwin Gatchalian refused to sign the report after it implicated Duterte in the scandal.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The administration started its COVID-19 vaccination program on March 1, 2021, a day after the arrival of the country's first vaccine doses, which the Chinese government donated. Under the program, priority was given to medical workers, senior citizens, and persons with co-morbidities. The administration initially had a target of vaccinating 90 million Filipinos before Duterte's term ended but lowered it to between 77 million and 80 million in April 2022 due to persisting vaccine hesitancy. By early June 2022, over 245 million vaccine doses had been secured by the administration, of which 151.2 million had been administered. By the end of Duterte's term in office, 70.5 million people had been fully vaccinated; over 3.7 million COVID-19 cases in the country had been recorded during his presidency since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, with over 3.69 million recoveries and 8,706 (0.23%) active cases.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In February 2019, Duterte merged the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council and the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board to create the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), which was tasked with centralizing processing of housing documents at one-stop shops. The DHSUD reported in October 2021 the Duterte administration financed and built 1,076,277 housing units from 2016 to 2021, the highest yearly output average of housing units per year since 1975.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On March 8, 2017, an estimated 12,000 people led by members of militant urban-poor group Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) illegally occupied about 5,000 housing units in government housing projects in Pandi, Bulacan. These projects were intended for National Housing Authority (NHA) beneficiaries, informal settlers displaced from danger zones in Metro Manila, and uniformed personnel. Duterte initially said he would not tolerate the illegal occupation, which he described as anarchy, and that the issue should be resolved through communication. The NHA issued eviction notices but failed to evict the occupants from the housing units, prompting Duterte to permit the illegal dwellers to continue occupying the units if they did not unhouse military and police officers in the process. In June 2018, after Kadamay members attempted to occupy another housing project in Rizal, Duterte ordered the Philippine National Police to prevent the takeover.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte campaigned to phase out contractualization (locally known as "endo", derived from "end of contract") and improve labor policies in the Philippines. In 2017, he and Department of Labor and Employment secretary Silvestre Bello III proposed a new policy to end labor-only contractualization but Bello declined to sign it, seeking input from labor groups. On March 16, Bello signed Department Order 174, which sets stricter guidelines on endo without outlawing it. Duterte continued his stand against the practice, promising to sign an executive order against it; however, terrorist attacks perpetuated by the Maute group in Marawi City delayed the signing. Labor groups organized a rally on March 15, 2018, in protest against the president's postponement. On May 1, Duterte signed Executive Order No. 51, prohibiting illegal contracting and subcontracting; labor groups expressed dissatisfaction because the terms of the agreement had changed since negotiation. Malacañang said it was powerless to enforce the ban and that lawmakers would have to amend the Labor Code of the Philippines for endo to be abolished.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On September 21, 2018, Duterte certified a Senate bill prohibiting labor-only contracting that was stated to benefit over 40 million workers. Several business groups urged Duterte to veto the bill, which they said was redundant and would force businesses to adopt automation and artificial intelligence, and that the bill violated the constitutional rights of businesses. In July 2019, Duterte vetoed the Security of Tenure Bill, which he said broadened the scope and definition of illegal "labor-only contracting", and prohibited legitimate forms of contractualization favorable to employees; he added "our goal, however, has always been to target the abuse, while leaving businesses free to engage in those practices beneficial to both management and the workforce". Employers welcomed the decision but some labor groups criticized it as a failure to deliver a campaign promise. The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines blamed business groups for using "scare tactics" of impending disinvestment if the bill was to pass.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In November 2019, the labor department reported employers had regularized over 564,000 contractual workers as part of the administration's effort to end contractualization.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte promised to prioritize the labor concerns of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). He created the Department of Migrant Workers to improve coordination among government agencies concerned with OFW affairs, the Overseas Filipino Bank, and the Overseas Filipino Workers Hospital. In August 2017, he signed a law extending the validity of Philippine passports from five years to ten years.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Bilateral agreements increasing protections and opportunities for OFWs were reached with 26 countries, including Cambodia, Canada, China, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Romania, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Duterte administration launched OFW centers, which provide centralized government front-line services for employment documents. Starting September 2016, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration exempted OFWs returning to their jobs or same employers abroad from paying travel tax, securing overseas employment certificates, and paying the agency's processing fee. In November 2018, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) launched the OFW E-Card, a new identification card allowing OFWs faster access to OWWA resources, including welfare services, scholarships, training programs, and social benefits.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte called for the abolition of the exploitative kafala system affecting millions of OFWs employed in Gulf countries. Following the death of Filipina maid Joanna Demafelis, whose body was found inside a freezer in Kuwait, a dispute between the two countries occurred. Duterte issued a deployment ban to Kuwait in February 2018 and thousands of OFWs in Kuwait were repatriated. On May 11, 2018, the two countries signed the Agreement on the Employment of Domestic Workers between the Philippines and Kuwait, which recognized certain rights of OFWs employed as servants and maids in Kuwait.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On January 15, 2020, following the alleged killing of Jeanelyn Villavende in Kuwait by her employer, the Philippines approved a ban on the deployment of workers to Kuwait . The Philippines and Kuwait signed an agreement on the proposed standard employment contract for OFWs in Kuwait on February 5, 2020. The standard contract contained regulations endorsed by Duterte; these regulations allowed OFWs to keep their passports and cellphones, mandated one day off with pay, and designated working and sleeping hours for the OFWs.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2022, the Duterte administration repatriated more than one million OFWs and provided them free COVID-19 testing, food, and accommodation in Metro Manila.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: During his presidency, Duterte approved the raising of salaries of government employees, including military, police, and other uniformed personnel. Through the Salary Standardization Law of 2019, salaries of government workers, including teachers and nurses, were increased in four tranches from 2020 to 2023. A law signed in April 2022 granted a night-shift differential pay to all government employees at a rate not exceeding 20% of the hourly basic rate of the employee.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In February 2019, Duterte signed a law extending paid maternity leave for female workers from 60 days to 105 days.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: According to Duterte, transactions would be simpler and faster through the use of a national identity system. On August 6, 2018, he signed into law the Philippine Identification System Act (PhilSys Law), seeking to integrate government IDs into a single identification card for all citizens and foreign residents in the country. On February 14, 2022, he issued an executive order institutionalizing the national ID card as sufficient proof of identity and age in all forms of transactions, eliminating the need to present additional identity documents.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The PhilSys project gained public support, but its implementation was delayed by pandemic restrictions and management issues and within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. By June 2022, 66.48 million Filipinos have completed the Step 2 registration process involving validation of supporting documents and biometric captures, while the Philippine Statistics Authority delivered 11.53 million ID cards to registrants through the Philippine Postal Corporation.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: During his presidential campaign, Duterte called the land reform program of the Aquino administration a "total failure", and promised to provide support services alongside land distribution to farmers. On July 5, 2016, a few days after Duterte's presidential inauguration, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) opened the gates of its main office in Quezon City after twenty years of being barricaded shut to prevent protesters from storming it.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Following the Boracay cleanup, Duterte distributed 623 certificates of land-ownership award covering of land in Boracay and Aklan to the area's Ati inhabitants and other beneficiaries. In February 2019, Duterte ordered all government agencies to identify government-owned land that could be distributed to agrarian-reform beneficiaries.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: By August 2021, under the Duterte administration, the DAR had distributed of land among 405,800 farmers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Duterte administration has sought to lift six million Filipinos out of poverty. Duterte issued his first executive order directing the cabinet secretary to supervise 12 government agencies under the Office of the President to evaluate and reform existing poverty reduction programs. On October 5, 2016, he signed his fifth executive order, adopting Ambisyon Natin 2040 as the 25-year economic development plan for the Philippines with the aim of making the Philippines "a prosperous, predominantly middle-class society where no one is poor" by 2040.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In April 2019, Duterte enacted three anti-poverty laws; the Magna Carta of the Poor, which aimed to increase the quality of life of poor Filipinos; the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) Act, which institutionalized a program providing conditional cash transfer to poor households for up to seven years; and the Community-based Monitoring System Act, which adopted a community-based monitoring system in every city and municipality to improve poverty analysis.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In December 2019, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported nearly six million Filipinos were no longer in poverty as the government raised its spending on social welfare; a poverty incidence of 23.3% in 2015 had dropped to 16.6% in 2018. Administration efforts to further lower the poverty rate by the end of 2022 were hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting quarantine measures and leading to an increase in unemployment. During this time, the number of impoverished Filipinos rose from 22.26 million in 2019 to 26.14 million in early 2021. In June 2020, the administration began to ease lockdown to encourage economic activity, and address hunger and unemployment, distributing cash aid to millions of poor and low-income families during the lockdowns.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On May 21, 2021, Duterte signed a law extending the electricity lifeline rates for the poor for 50 years.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Duterte administration strengthened the 2012 Reproductive Health Law as part of its 10-point socioeconomic agenda. The law had not yet been implemented due to a temporary restraining order issued by the Supreme Court. On January 9, 2017, Duterte signed an executive order providing funds and support for modern family planning, and ordered the full implementation of the law.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte enacted several laws protecting minors from abuse and exploitation. He signed laws that criminalized child marriage, raised the age of sexual consent from 12 to 16, and required the government to provide special protection to children in armed conflict. In September 2019, he issued an executive order creating the National Council Against Child Labor. He signed a law in May 2022 promoting the rights of abandoned children with unknown parents and recognizing them as natural-born Filipino citizens.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed a law simplifying the country's adoption process and establishing the National Authority for Child Care.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In March 2019, a water shortage crisis severely affected Metro Manila, causing long queues to collect water rations. Duterte ordered the review of the 1997 water-concession agreements signed under the Ramos administration with private water companies Maynilad and Manila Water, saying the agreements were onerous to both the government and the public. That November, a Singapore-based arbitration court in November 2019 ruled the government had to pay billions of pesos to both companies as compensation for losses from rejected water-rate hikes. Duterte refused to pay and threatened to sue the two firms for economic plunder. Following the Department of Justice's discovery of 12 "onerous provisions" that favored the companies, Duterte ordered Solicitor General Jose Calida and Finance secretary Carlos Dominguez III to write a new water-concession contract favorable to the public and the government, and ordered the two firms to accept or face expropriation. The two firms agreed to waive the refund from the government, and, in 2021, signed the revised agreement, which removed government non-interference clauses and the firms' authority to charge corporate income tax to consumers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In January 2022, Duterte signed new franchises for Maynilad and Manila Water, allowing the firms to continue operating for another 25 years. Under the new franchise laws, the President is allowed to temporarily take over and operate the firms during a period of war, rebellion, calamity, emergency, and disaster.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte approved, in January 2017, a 1,000 increase in the Social Security System pension. He signed legislation raising the old-age pension for living Filipino veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War; providing incentives for Filipino scientists abroad to return and share their expertise; granting tax-free compensation to Marawi Siege victims and mandatory, continued benefits to all frontline workers during public-health emergencies; granting benefits to the surviving spouse and children of deceased, retired prosecutors of the National Prosecution Service; and, strengthening the "Sangguniang Kabataan" and granting monthly honoraria to barangay youth-council officials.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: To decongest Metro Manila and promote development in other regions, Duterte issued an executive order institutionalizing the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program, which provides incentives such as transportation, cash aid, skills training, and low-cost housing to qualifying people wishing to return to their provinces. In his last month in office, he doubled the cash incentives for Filipino medalists in the 31st Southeast Asian Games, and allowed a bill granting additional benefits and coverage to solo parents to lapse into law.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte has expressed disdain for gambling. Early in his term, he announced his intention to stop all online gambling operations in the country. In January 2018, he ordered the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to stop accepting new casino applications. In August that year, he dismissed the entire board of the Nayong Pilipino Foundation (NPF) for approving an onerous casino deal, ordering the Department of Justice to review the contract between the NPF and Chinese casino operator Landing Resorts Philippines Development Corp.; Duterte said the contract was disadvantageous to the government due to its low rental payments and lengthy lease.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte declined China's request to ban Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) because of the industry's contribution to the economy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he allowed gambling operations in the country to raise COVID-19 response funds, lifting the ban on casinos he imposed in 2018 on Boracay Island following the island's cleanup and initially rejecting calls to terminate "e-sabong" (online cockfighting) operations amid the disappearance of more than 30 cockfight enthusiasts.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: From 2016 through 2021, the PAGCOR earned 373.33 billion in revenues, of which 238.74 was remitted to the government; 150.16 billion was remitted to the National Treasury and was used to fund the Universal Health Care Act, while 360 million was remitted to the Dangerous Drugs Board.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Recognizing the "urgent need to create a coherent and unified strategy for space development and utilization to keep up with other nations", Duterte signed a law creating the Philippine Space Agency, to serve as the central government agency addressing national issues and activities related to space, science, and technology applications.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Department of Science and Technology, led by Secretary Fortunato de la Peña, in collaboration with Japanese institutions, launched three satellites into space under the STAMINA4Space program: the Maya-1 nanosatellite, on June 29, 2018; the Diwata-2 microsatellite, on October 29, 2018; and the Maya-2 nanosatellite, on February 21, 2021.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In his fifth State of the Nation address in July 2020, Duterte warned the major telecommunications companies Globe Telecom and Smart Communications to improve their services by December or risk facing closure. Duterte urged telecommunications firms to report local officials delaying the approval of permits for cell-site construction, after the firms said red tape and non-standardized requirements made it difficult for them to build towers. In compliance with Duterte's order, the Department of the Interior and Local Government simplified the application process for the construction of shared cellular sites, shortening it to 16 days; local government units also complied with Duterte's order. Globe Telecom and Smart Communications have since improved their services. In February 2022, average fixed broadband download speeds rose from 7.91 Mbit/s to 82.61 Mbit/s, a 944% increase; average mobile internet speeds increased 467% at 42.22 Mbit/s from 7.44 Mbit/s since the start of the Duterte administration.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte campaigned to break up the telecom duopoly of Globe and Smart due to the companies' poor mobile network services and internet speeds. Bidding was held in November 2018 to determine a third major telecommunications provider in the country; Dito Telecommunity, which was then known as Mislatel Consortium, provisionally won the bid on November 7. Duterte formally awarded the company its certificate of public convenience and necessity in July 2019. On March 9, 2021, Dito Telecommunity began commercial operations, becoming the Philippines' third telecommunications company, and soon received a 25-year franchise.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In March 2017, Duterte approved the National Broadband Program (NBP) that was developed by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). Despite a small budget, the DICT and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority completed the Luzon Bypass Infrastructure, an ultra-high-speed system for international submarine cables that avoided the earthquake-prone Luzon Strait.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte and his administration were embroiled in controversy following the cessation of TV and radio broadcast operations of ABS-CBN, the largest media network in the country. Duterte expressed displeasure at the media network following its failure to air his political advertisements for which his 2016 election campaign had paid; during the same period, the network aired Senator Antonio Trillanes' advertisements, showing clips of Duterte speaking about issues of rape and murder. Duterte said he would not allow the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to grant ABS-CBN a permit unless the firm paid its alleged tax debt. In February 2020, a few months before its legislative franchise expired, ABS-CBN president and CEO Carlo Katigbak issued an apology to Duterte for failing to air his political advertisements, offering to return the remaining 2.6 million in advertisement funds. Duterte accepted the apology and declined the refund, and distanced himself from the franchise-renewal issue, saying he had no control over the House of Representatives or Solicitor General Jose Calida, who earlier filed a "quo warranto" petition before the Supreme Court, seeking to invalidate ABS-CBN's franchise due to an alleged violation of the 1987 Constitution regarding foreign ownership. Following the expiry of its legislative franchise on May 4, ABS-CBN ceased its broadcast operations; the following day, the NTC issued a cease-and-desist order. On July 10, the House Committee on Legislative Franchises, in a 70-to-11 vote, declined the media network's application for a new 25-year franchise, citing issues with the dual citizenship of its chairman emeritus Eugenio Lopez III, a possible violation of constitutional limits on foreign ownership, reported tax and labor violations, and allegations of biased reporting and political meddling. Opposition politicians, media groups, academic institutions, and church leaders condemned the broadcast shutdown and the franchise-renewal denial. Calida called the cease-and-desist order "a triumph of the rule of law".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed laws requiring the government to provide free internet access in public places and allowing mobile users to permanently keep their numbers. In March 2021, to improve internet access, he issued an executive order granting telecommunication companies access to satellite services. By March 2022, 7,977 WiFi operational sites in public areas nationwide were established under the Free WiFi for All program while the completion rate of the first phase of the NBP was at 73.5%.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On June 19, 2017, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) launched the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program to modernize the country's public transportation system with an emphasis on sustainability. The program phased out 15-year-old and older jeepneys and other public utility vehicles (PUVs), replacing them with safer, more-efficient vehicles, which were required to have at least a Euro4-compliant engine or an electric engine to lessen pollution. Under the program, PUV operators with existing franchises were encouraged to consolidate into a single legal group of at least 15 units. On June 28, 2019, the DOTr and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority launched the "Tsuper Iskolar" program, providing scholarships and training to public-transport drivers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte campaigned to solve the long-standing traffic problem in Metro Manila, particularly in EDSA, requesting from Congress emergency powers to bypass bidding procedures and hasten the resolution of right-of-way issues. At least three bills granting Duterte emergency powers were filed in the House of Representatives. The House approved a bill but it did not progress in the Senate, prompting Duterte to abandon the plan, citing the lack of support from Congress and insufficient time.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In his fourth State of the Nation Address in July 2019, Duterte ordered the clearing of obstructions on public roads, instructing Department of the Interior and Local Government secretary Eduardo Año to suspend mayors and governors who failed to comply. Año gave mayors 60 days to clear illegal obstructions and illegally parked vehicles from all public roads and sidewalks. In October 2019, Año said: "based on the report from 1,246 LGUs, 6,899 roads around the country were cleared through the cooperation of the provincial, city and municipal governments"; 97 local government units failed to comply with Duterte's order and were given five days to explain their non-compliance.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The DOTr created protected bike lanes in major metropolises. By the end of Duterte's term in office, of bike lane networks had been completed in Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao. Duterte extended the validity of driver's licenses from three years to five and granted students riding PUVs a 20% fare discount. In April 2022, he allowed a bill regulating and developing the Philippines' electric vehicle industry to lapse into law. By 2022, under Duterte's Build! Build! Build! program, of roads and 6,854 bridges had been constructed, maintained, or upgraded; 579 commercial and social tourism ports had been developed; and 248 airport projects were completed.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2016, Duterte said dictator Ferdinand Marcos's remains would be moved and interred at Libingan ng mga Bayani (Heroes' Cemetery), calling him a president, soldier, and hero. On November 18, 2016, Marcos was buried with full military honors at Heroes' Cemetery after the Supreme Court issued a verdict permitting it. The burial provoked national outrage, especially among those who had suffered human rights abuses under the Marcos regime; protests were continuously held from November 18 to 30. Vice President Leni Robredo criticized the burial while Duterte expressed hope people could "find space in their hearts to forgive and set free those who have hurt or injured them".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2017, citing the need to prioritize funds for government programs and projects, Duterte revoked the 2015 executive order issued by President Aquino III creating Negros Island Region, effectively reverting Negros Occidental and the city of Bacolod to Region VI, and Negros Oriental to Region VII. In April 2019, he signed a law dividing Palawan province into three new provinces; Palawan del Norte, Palawan del Sur, and Palawan Oriental; the law failed to gain a majority of votes in a plebiscite. A law he signed dividing Maguindanao into Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur provinces was ratified in a plebiscite on September 17, 2022. In April 2019, Duterte signed a law renaming Compostela Valley to Davao de Oro, a change that was overwhelmingly supported in a plebiscite.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte signed a law amending the Local Government Code of 1991, easing conversion of municipalities to component cities on the conditions the municipality earns million for two consecutive years and has either a land area of at least or a population of at least 150,000.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: The Duterte administration's foreign policy emphasized diplomacy and independence. This policy rejected interference by foreign governments; Duterte said: "We will observe and must insist on the time-honored principle of sovereignty, sovereign equality, non-interference and the commitment of peaceful settlements of dispute that will serve our people and protect the interests of our country".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte placed great importance on the Philippines' diplomatic relations with its Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) neighbors. Following tradition, his first trips outside the country were to Laos on September 7, 2016, for the 49th ASEAN Leaders Summit, Indonesia on September 9, Vietnam on September 29, Malaysia on November 9, Cambodia on December 13, Singapore on December 15, Thailand on March 17, and Myanmar on March 19.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In 2017, the Philippines was chair and host to the ASEAN summits; the culminating event was held in Manila on November 10–14 (31st summit). Duterte and other ASEAN leaders signed the ASEAN Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers, a landmark document that would ensure social protection of migrant workers in the ASEAN region; however, the consensus was silent on undocumented workers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Early in his presidential tenure, Duterte made efforts to distance the Philippines from the United States, and forge closer relationships with China and Russia, particularly in trade and commerce. In his first visit to China in October 2016, Duterte announced his "separation of a foreign policy" from the United States, and declared a realignment of the Philippines with China. Duterte said he intended to review the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which he said did not bear the signature of the Philippine president; a month earlier, he informed the United States the upcoming annual Balikatan exercise would be the last. After the U.S. State Department in November 2016 refused to sell 26,000 assault rifles to the Philippine police due to human rights violations concerns relating to the drug war, Duterte sought to source weapons from China and Russia. In May 2017, Duterte expressed interest in conducting joint military exercises between the Philippine Armed Forces and China's People's Liberation Army in Mindanao, particularly in the Sulu Sea.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Seeking to avoid armed conflict, Duterte adopted a conciliatory and friendly stance towards China that was unlike his predecessor's antagonism toward it. In 2016, Duterte and Chinese president Xi Jinping created the biannual Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea, a process allowing the two nations to peacefully manage disputes and strengthen their relations. In May 2017, Duterte said Xi had threatened war if the Philippines tried to enforce the South China Sea Arbitration ruling and drill for oil in the West Philippine Sea.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte also hoped a non-confrontational approach to China would eventually lead to joint exploration of the West Philippine Sea to support Build! Build! Build!. During Xi's first state visit to the country in November 2018, the Philippines and China signed 29 agreements, including cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative and a memorandum of understanding on joint oil-and-gas developments in the West Philippine Sea. In September 2019, Duterte said Xi had offered the Philippines a controlling stake in a gas deal in the Reed Bank if the Philippines set aside the South China Sea Arbitration ruling.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In April 2017, Duterte ordered the Armed Forces of the Philippines to occupy and fortify several uninhabited islands in the South China Sea. Following the sighting of Chinese survey vessels, he ordered the Philippine Navy to build structures on Benham Rise to assert the Philippines' sovereignty over the region. A month later, he signed an executive order formally renaming Benham Rise to Philippine Rise.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Chinese aggression in the South China Sea strained the nations' relationship. In April 2017, Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua called Philippine plans to repair Thitu (Pag-asa) Island illegal. Between 2018 and 2020, China deployed hundreds of military vessels around Thitu Island to impede these repairs. In April 2019, following a military report at least 275 Chinese vessels had been monitoring the region since January, Duterte threatened to send Philippine soldiers on a "suicide mission" should China further encroach. In January 2021, China passed a law authorizing its coast guard to fire on foreign vessels as needed and in March, it moored 220 Chinese vessels believed to be manned by the Chinese military at disputed Whitsun Reef. In response, Duterte authorized foreign-affairs secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. to submit several diplomatic protests.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: By June 2020, Duterte was gradually distancing the Philippines from China. In July that year, he called on the Department of Foreign Affairs to demand China recognize the South China Sea Arbitration ruling. During the 75th United Nations General Assembly in September 2020, Duterte made one of his most vocal defenses of the Philippine victory in the arbitration case:


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In January 2020, when the U.S. denied a visa for Senator Ronald dela Rosa due to his role as police chief during the Philippine anti-drug war, Duterte moved to terminate the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA). Duterte repeatedly postponed the termination between June 2020 and June 2021, canceling it in July 2021 during U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's visit to the Philippines. Following criticism over vaccine-procurement delays during the COVID-19 pandemic, Duterte used the VFA as leverage for securing vaccines from the U.S.; in August 2021, he thanked the U.S. for its donations, which he said played a key role in his decision to keep the VFA.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In December 2020, the Philippines received military equipment worth (1.4 billion ($29 million) from the U.S. The countries made efforts to reinvigorate relations. This included high-level visits by commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Adm. John Aquilino, who affirmed the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) with the Philippines, and Marine Corps Commandant David H. Berger. In September 2021, foreign-affairs secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. and defense secretary Delfin Lorenzana met with counterparts in the U.S. to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-Philippines MDT. In the same month, Locsin welcomed the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, which he said could help balance the power in the Indo-Pacific region; days after, Duterte expressed concern the AUKUS deal could provoke a "nuclear arms race".


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: China played an important role in the early months of the Philippines' response to COVID-19. In February 2021, China became the first country to send the Philippines COVID-19 vaccines; Duterte said he had asked Xi for assistance in securing vaccines. On January 16, 2022, China donated 1 billion of non-combat military equipment, two days after the Philippines made a deal with India to buy the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile to improve its coastal defense.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In March 2022, Duterte warned trouble might occur if the next Philippine administration chose not to honor the memorandum of understanding with China on joint-exploration activities in the West Philippine Sea, after receiving a "reminder" from a man from China whom he did not identify. On June 24, six days before his term ended, Duterte ordered the complete termination of the planned joint oil exploration in the West Philippine Sea with China; Locsin stated in the three years since it was signed, the "objective of developing oil and gas resources so critical for the Philippines" had not been achieved.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine in March 2022, Duterte pledged to open the country's facilities to American forces under the 1951 MDT if the conflict spreads to Asia.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Philippine-Russian relations improved during Duterte's presidency. On November 20, 2016, Duterte met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the APEC summit in Lima, Peru; Duterte has praised Putin's leadership skills, calling him his "idol". Duterte stated the Philippines could seek stronger diplomatic cooperation with China and Russia "to make the world more peaceful" but that the Philippines was "not ready" for military alliances due to the United States-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty. The Russian government offered a strategic partnership with the Philippines and offered to assist the purchasing of Russian-made weaponry.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In May 2017, Duterte made his first state visit to Russia and met with Putin to finalize a defense-cooperation agreement between the nations but the visit was cut short when Islamic militants attacked Marawi. In October the same year, the Philippines and Russia signed an agreement of defense and technical cooperation, which included a sales contract for the purchase of defense articles with Russian state-owned company Rosoboronexport; Russia donated thousands of rifles, helmets, and other military equipment to the Philippines.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On October 2, 2019, Duterte made his second state visit to Russia to discuss increasing security and defense cooperation. During the visit, Duterte received an honorary doctorate degree for international relations or foreign diplomacy from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2021, Duterte and Putin held a teleconference to discuss production and supply of coronavirus vaccines, defense, and trade opportunities; Duterte informed Putin of his plan to order 20 million doses of Sputnik V vaccine from Russia. On May 1 that year, 15,000 Sputnik V vaccines purchased by the government arrived in the Philippines.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: A few days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, the Philippines voted in favor of a United Nations resolution, expressing "explicit condemnation" of the invasion. Duterte described Putin, whom he considers a friend, as "suicidal" and said the invasion deserved condemnation. He said the Philippines would remain neutral on the issue. Amid rising global oil prices brought about by the invasion, in May 2022, Duterte contradicted Putin's labeling of the invasion as a "special military operation", saying the invasion was a war waged against "a sovereign nation". A few days before he left office, Duterte approved his administration's cancellation of its order of 16 Mil Mi-17 military helicopters from Russia for fear of United States sanctions amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte expressed willingness to accept refugees such as Rohingya people fleeing war and persecution in Myanmar, people fleeing Afghanistan to escape the Taliban's rule, and Ukrainian refugees. On September 9, 2021, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. said the Philippines has welcomed Afghan refugees to the country since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan three weeks prior but provided no further details for the refugees' safety and privacy.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On February 28, 2022, Duterte issued an executive order institutionalizing access to protection services for refugees, stateless persons, and asylum seekers.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On March 16, 2017, opposition politician Gary Alejano filed an impeachment complaint against Duterte citing thousands of deaths in Duterte's anti-drug campaign, alleged leadership of vigilante group Davao Death Squad, and allegations of graft and corruption. Alejano, on March 30, filed a supplemental complaint over Duterte's alleged inaction and "defeatist stance" in the West Philippine Sea, Panatag Shoal, and Benham Rise. On May 15, the House Justice Committee officially dismissed the charge by unanimous vote due to insufficient evidence after Alejano said he had no personal knowledge of the alleged offenses, having based his impeachment complaint on news reports and witness testimonies.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Opposition alliance Otso Diretso promoted the 2019 mid-term election as a referendum on Duterte and his administration. Eight of the twelve candidates backed by Duterte's administration won Senate seats; Otso Diretso suffered a historic loss, failing to secure any seats.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: In a June 8, 2021, interview, Duterte stated he would either remain neutral in the forthcoming 2022 Philippine presidential election or endorse a candidate. Duterte later stated he may run as vice president. In August that year, Duterte announced he would run as vice president; critics raised the possibility of him extending his term. The PDP–Laban Cusi faction fielded former Philippine National Police chief and Senator Ronald dela Rosa as president, who was widely suspected of being a placeholder for Duterte's daughter, Davao City mayor Sara Duterte. On October 2, 2021, Duterte withdrew his candidacy and announced his retirement from politics, with long-time aide and Senator Bong Go replacing him as the vice-presidential candidate.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On November 13, 2021, hours after Sara unexpectedly decided to run as vice president under the Lakas–CMD party, dela Rosa withdrew and was replaced by Go. Duterte retracted his planned retirement and announced he would run for vice president as an expression of dismay for Sara's decision to enter the vice-presidential race when polls showed she was the preferred candidate for presidency. He later withdrew candidacy after deciding not to run against his daughter, and instead announced his intent to run as senator, while endorsing a Go–Sara team.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Sara, however, decided to partner with Bongbong Marcos, who announced his presidential candidacy in November 2021. Go expressed his disinterest in the presidency. On December 14, hours after Go withdrew his candidacy for president, Duterte withdrew his senate bid.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte remained influential before the national elections because several presidential candidates were open to his endorsement due to his popularity. Allies of Duterte endorsed different candidates after the Cusi faction was left without a leader following Go's withdrawal. The PDP–Laban Cusi faction endorsed presidential candidate Marcos, with some officials calling for Duterte to do the same. Duterte, however, endorsed only Sara as vice president and 17 senatorial candidates, and said he would remain neutral, deciding not to endorse any presidential candidate and prohibiting his Cabinet members from campaigning for any candidate to avoid suspicion he would use public funds for his preferred successor's campaign; and to prevent cabinet members from compromising their integrity. Duterte said the next president should be decisive, compassionate, a good judge of character, and preferably a lawyer, which a PDP–Laban official interpreted as a "virtual endorsement" for his rival Vice President Leni Robredo, who also decided to run for president. In March 2022, Go said Duterte briefly met with Marcos and gave him advice on the presidency but could not say whether Duterte endorsed Marcos.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: On May 5, 2022, Duterte created a transition committee led by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to oversee the transition of power to the next administration. According to analysts, Duterte's popularity was "inherited" by Marcos and Sara, both of whom won landslides in the election.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte's approval rating remained relatively high throughout his presidency despite criticism and international opposition to his anti-narcotics drive. Two weeks into Duterte's presidency, on July 13, 2016, Social Weather Stations (SWS) conducted the first approval survey since his inauguration; Duterte received an "excellent" trust rating of 79% among 1,200 Filipino adults. A week later, Pulse Asia released a poll conducted on July 2–8 showing 91% of Filipinos trusted Duterte, making him the most-trusted official in the Philippines since 1999. Duterte's net-satisfaction was at its lowest value 45% in July 2018; it recovered to 54% in September 2018 and 60% in December that year.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: By July 2019, halfway through his six-year term in office, Duterte had a record net-satisfaction rating of 68%. An April 2019 survey put his approval rating at 79%, higher than any of his predecessors at that stage in their presidencies. By December that year, his approval rating was 87% according to Pulse Asia; this was credited to poverty reduction and the successful hosting of the 2019 SEA Games.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a Pulse Asia September 2020 ""Ulat ng Bayan Survey"" ("Report to the Nation Survey"), showed 84% of Filipinos approved of the government's work to control the spread of COVID-19 and its assistance to those who lost their jobs due to the pandemic; 92% of survey respondents said Duterte has "done well" in preventing the spread of COVID-19 in the country. Duterte's SWS net-satisfaction rating rose to 60% in December 2021, higher than the 52% rating in September 2021, and slightly lower than the 62% rating in June 2021; the survey also noted higher net satisfaction among those vaccinated and those willing to be vaccinated.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte remained popular until the end of his term; according to a PUBLiCUS Asia survey conducted between March 30 to April 6, 2022, 67.2% of 1,500 respondents approved of his performance over the past 12 months while only 15.2% disapproved. A 2021 survey by WR Numero Research showed 54.59% of voters wanted soft continuity of Duterte's policies, 29.57% wanted full continuity, and 15.84% preferred change.


title: Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte

text: Duterte left office with a net-satisfaction rating of 81%—his highest—according to an SWS survey held between June 26 to 29, 2022. A survey of 1,500 people conducted by PUBLiCUS Asia in June—Duterte's last month in office—showed he was the most-popular post-EDSA president, with a 75% approval of his performance as president, while only 10% expressed disapproval.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream (, sometimes called scalded, clouted, Devonshire or Cornish cream) is a thick cream made by heating full-cream cow's milk using steam or a water bath and then leaving it in shallow pans to cool slowly. During this time, the cream content rises to the surface and forms "clots" or "clouts", hence the name. It forms an essential part of a cream tea.


title: Clotted cream

text: Although its origin is uncertain, the cream's production is commonly associated with dairy farms in South West England and in particular the counties of Devon and Cornwall. The current largest commercial producer in the United Kingdom is Rodda's at Scorrier, near Redruth, Cornwall, which can produce up to 25 tons of clotted cream a day. In 1998 the 'Cornish clotted cream' was registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) under European Union law. The designation can be used if the production follows certain requirements, from milk produced in Cornwall and the cream has a minimum fat content of 55%. Upon Brexit, the PDO was also registered under UK law. It is recognised as a geographical indication in Georgia, Iceland, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Ukraine.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream has been described as having a "nutty, cooked milk" flavour, and a "rich sweet flavour" with a texture that is grainy, sometimes with oily globules on the crusted surface. It is a thick cream, with a very high fat content (a minimum of 55 percent, but an average of 64 percent). For comparison, the fat content of single cream is only 18 percent.


title: Clotted cream

text: Originally made by farmers to reduce the amount of waste from their milk, clotted cream has become so deep-rooted in the culture of southwest Britain that it is embedded as part of the region's tourist attraction. While there is no doubt of its strong and long association with Cornwall and Devon, it is not clear how ancient its origins are.


title: Clotted cream

text: The "Oxford Companion to Food" follows traditional folklore by suggesting it may have been introduced to Cornwall by Phoenician traders in search of tin. It is similar to kaymak (or kajmak), a Near Eastern delicacy that is made throughout the Middle East, southeast Europe, Iran, Afghanistan, India, and Turkey. A similar clotted cream known as () is also made in Mongolia.


title: Clotted cream

text: Contemporary ancient food experts, noting Strabo's commentaries on Britain have proposed that the early Britons would probably have clotted cream to preserve its freshness.


title: Clotted cream

text: More recently, regional archaeologists have associated the stone "fogou" (dial. 'fuggy-hole'), or souterrains, found across Atlantic Britain, France, and Ireland as a possible form of "cold store" for dairy production of milk, cream, and cheese in particular. Similar functions are ascribed to the linhay (or 'linney') stone-built form, often used as a dairy in later medieval longhouses in the same regions.


title: Clotted cream

text: It has long been disputed whether clotted cream originated in Devon or Cornwall, and which county makes it the best. There is evidence that the monks of Tavistock Abbey were making clotted cream in the early 14th century. After their abbey had been ransacked by Vikings in AD 997, the monks rebuilt it with the help of Ordulf, Earl of Devon. Local workers were drafted in to help with the repairs, and the monks rewarded them with bread, clotted cream, and strawberry preserves. The 1658 cookery book "The Compleat Cook" had a recipe for "clouted cream".


title: Clotted cream

text: In the 19th century it was regarded as better nourishment than "raw" cream because that cream was liable to go sour and be difficult to digest, causing illness. An article from 1853 calculates that creating clotted cream will produce 25 percent more cream than regular methods. In Devon, it was so common that in the mid-19th century it was used in the formative processes of butter, instead of churning cream or milk. The butter made in this way had a longer lifespan and was free from any negative flavours added by the churning.


title: Clotted cream

text: It has long been the practice for local residents in southwest England, or those on holiday, to send small tins or tubs of clotted cream by post to friends and relations in other parts of the British Isles.


title: Clotted cream

text: In 1993, an application was made for the name "Cornish clotted cream" to have a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) in the European Union for cream produced by the traditional recipe in Cornwall. This was accepted in 1998. Cornish clotted cream must be made from milk produced in Cornwall and have a minimum butterfat content of 55 percent. The unique, slightly yellow, Cornish clotted cream colour is due to the high carotene levels in the grass.


title: Clotted cream

text: Traditionally, clotted cream was created by straining fresh cow's milk, letting it stand in a shallow pan in a cool place for several hours to allow the cream to rise to the surface, then heating it either over hot cinders or in a water bath, before a slow cooling. The clots that formed on the top were then skimmed off with a long-handled cream-skimmer, known in Devon as a "reamer" or "raimer". By the mid-1930s, the traditional way of using milk brought straight from the dairy was becoming a rarity in Devon because using a cream separator actively separated the cream from the milk using centrifugal force, which produced far more clotted cream than the traditional method from the same amount of milk. As a farmer's wife in Poundsgate said, "the separator saves a whole cow!"


title: Clotted cream

text: Today, there are two distinct modern methods for making clotted cream. The "float cream method" includes scalding a floating layer of double cream in milk (skimmed or whole) in shallow trays. To scald, the trays are heated using steam or very hot water. After the mixture has been heated for up to an hour it is slowly cooled for 12 hours or more, before the cream is separated and packaged. The "scald cream method" is similar, but the milk layer is removed and a layer of cream which has been mechanically separated to a minimum fat level is used. This cream is then heated in a similar manner, but at a lower temperature and after a set amount of time it is then chilled and packaged. In the United Kingdom the resultant cream is deemed to be equivalent to pasteurised for legal purposes. Unlike pasteurisation, however, there is no requirement for the temperatures to be recorded on thermograph charts. As the temperatures are lower than used in standard pasteurisation, much care is needed in ensuring high standards of hygiene.


title: Clotted cream

text: The largest manufacturer in the United Kingdom is Rodda's, a family-owned business based in Scorrier, Cornwall. Founded in 1890, the company was producing over per year in 1985. In 2010 the managing director said that they might produce as little as a day in January, but up to a day as Christmas approached. In the early 1980s, Rodda's signed deals with international airlines to serve small tubs of clotted cream with the in-flight desserts. The company considers the annual Wimbledon tennis championships one of their peak selling periods. As a by-product, for every of milk used, of skimmed milk is produced, which is then used in food manufacture.


title: Clotted cream

text: One Devon manufacturer, Definitely Devon was purchased by Robert Wiseman Dairies in March 2006, closing one of the two Devon dairies and moving all production to Okehampton. However, in 2011 Robert Wiseman sold the Definitely Devon Brand to Rodda's, who moved the production of Definitely Devon to Cornwall, which caused some controversy as the name was not changed, prompting an investigation by Trading Standards.


title: Clotted cream

text: Throughout southwest England, clotted cream manufacture is a cottage industry, with many farms and dairies producing cream for sale in local outlets. Clotted cream is also produced in Somerset, Dorset, Herefordshire, Pembrokeshire, and the Isle of Wight.


title: Clotted cream

text: When authentic clotted cream is not available, there are ways to create a substitute product, such as by mixing mascarpone with whipped cream, a little sugar, and vanilla extract.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream is an essential part of a cream tea, a favourite with tourists particularly in Cornwall and Devon. It is served on scones—or the more traditional "splits"—with strawberry jam, along with a pot of tea. Traditionally, there are differences in the way it is eaten in each county: in Devon, the cream is traditionally spread first on the scone, with the jam dolloped on top. In Cornwall the jam is spread first with a dollop of cream. Cream teas, known as Devonshire teas, spread to southern Australia as early immigrants from Cornwall and Devon took their traditional recipes with them. In 2010, Langage Farm in Devon started a campaign for "Devon cream tea" to have protected designation of origin similar to "Cornish clotted cream". One variation on a cream tea is called "Thunder and Lightning" which consists of a round of bread topped with clotted cream and golden syrup, honey, or treacle.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream can be used as an accompaniment to hot or cold desserts. Clotted cream, especially clotted cream from Devon, where it is less yellow due to lower carotene levels in the grass, is regularly used in baking. It is used throughout southwest England in the production of ice cream and fudge.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream is used in some savoury dishes, and can be incorporated into mashed potato, risotto or scrambled eggs.


title: Clotted cream

text: Cabbage cream (which does not contain cabbage in spite of the name) was a delicacy in the mid-17th century: layers of clotted cream were interspersed with sugar and rosewater, creating a cabbage-like effect when served. It was a common accompaniment to junket, a milk-based dessert which went out of fashion in the mid-20th century.


title: Clotted cream

text: As with many Cornish and Devonian icons, clotted cream has become entrenched in local folklore. For example, one myth tells of Jenny who enticed the giant Blunderbore (sometimes called Moran) by feeding him clotted cream. He eventually fell in love with her and made her his fourth wife. Another myth, from Dartmoor, tells of a princess who wanted to marry an elven prince, but according to tradition had to bathe in pure cream first. Unfortunately, a witch who wanted the prince for her daughter kept souring the cream. Eventually, the prince offered the princess clotted cream, which the witch was unable to sour.


title: Clotted cream

text: Clotted cream is also mentioned as one of the staple foods of the hobbits in J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" books.


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: Jonathan J. Gilbert (born April 28, 1967) is an American former television and film actor known for his role as Willie Oleson on the TV series "Little House on the Prairie".


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: Gilbert was born on April 28, 1967. He is the adopted son of actors Barbara Cowen (née Barbara Crane) and Paul Gilbert and the adopted brother of actresses Melissa Gilbert and Sara Gilbert.


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: In Melissa Gilbert's 2010 autobiography, "Prairie Tale", she said Paul took his own life in 1976 due to his suffering from constant pain. Barbara then married Harold Abeles, and together they had Sara Abeles, who changed her name to Sara Gilbert, even though she has no relation to Paul.


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: In Melissa Gilbert's autobiography, she wrote that when Jonathan was in his early 20s, he moved away from California and she had no relationship with him since then, for reasons supposedly unknown to her. Her autobiography states that he is a stockbroker living in New York City.


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: Gilbert is best known for his performance as Willie Oleson on the NBC TV series, "Little House on the Prairie", from 1974 to 1983. He is also one of only six actors on "Little House on the Prairie" to appear throughout the entire series, along with Melissa Gilbert, Katherine MacGregor, Richard Bull, Kevin Hagen, and Dabbs Greer. In 1979, Gilbert was in the made-for-television movie "The Little House Years" also as Willie Oleson. Also in 1979, he was in the made-for-TV-Movie "The Miracle Worker" as Jimmy.


title: Jonathan Gilbert

text: He was in two out of the three made-for-television movies based on the "Little House on the Prairie" series of books ("Little House: Look Back to Yesterday" and "Little House: The Last Farewell").


title: Junior Soprano

text: Corrado John "Junior" Soprano Jr., portrayed by Dominic Chianese, is a fictional character from the HBO TV series "The Sopranos". Usually referred to as "Junior" or "Uncle June", he is the official boss of the DiMeo crime family for most of the series. A younger Corrado sometimes appears in flashbacks and is played by Rocco Sisto. Corey Stoll portrays a young Junior Soprano in the 2021 prequel film, "The Many Saints of Newark". Dominic Chianese's performance as Junior was universally lauded.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior is smart, old-fashioned, stubborn and insecure about his power. Although Junior is portrayed as bitter and deceitful in season one, he shows a more considerate and humorous side of himself in the later seasons and reveals a more sensitive aspect of his personality during his illness and house arrest. According to series creator David Chase the name Junior was taken from one of his own older cousins. Chianese had landed the role of Junior over Tony Sirico who plays Paulie Gualtieri, and Frank Vincent who plays Phil Leotardo.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In season one it is stated that Junior is 70 years old, placing his birth date in 1928 or 1929. Corrado Soprano, Jr. is the son of Corrado and Mariangela D'Agostino Soprano, who were from Ariano in the Province of Avellino and immigrated to the United States in 1911. Junior is Tony Soprano's uncle: Junior's younger brother is Tony's father Johnny Soprano. He tells the court-ordered psychologist when feigning mental incompetence that he was getting a haircut when he heard about the Assassination of John F. Kennedy.


title: Junior Soprano

text: He tells Tony that he admired John F. Kennedy but did not like his brother Robert because of the latter's involvement with the United States Senate Select Committee on Improper Activities in Labor and Management, as well as the prosecution of Jimmy Hoffa and investigation into the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Tony fondly recalls how as a child Junior taught him how to play baseball and took him to New York Yankees games.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Both Junior and Johnny dropped out of high school and turned to a life of organized crime, joining the DiMeo crime family. In the episode "In Camelot", Junior Soprano reveals that he was on a date with Fran Felstein at the 500 Club in Atlantic City, New Jersey to see Enzo Stuarti perform when Fran met his brother Johnny. Junior was in love with Fran and wanted to propose, even buying a ring for her, but could not allow a marriage to affect his status in organized crime, and could not summon the courage to ask her.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior always watched over Tony, especially after Johnny's death from emphysema in 1986. Junior guided Tony's ascension in the crime family when Tony took over his father's crew becoming the family's youngest captain.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Following the arrest of longtime boss Ercole "Eckley" DiMeo in late 1995, Junior got into a trucking dispute with new acting boss Jackie Aprile Sr. He fled to Boca Raton to avoid any possible repercussions but Tony and Soprano soldier "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero arranged a meeting to solve the problem. Junior sometimes resented having to answer to the young Aprile, who used to fetch Junior sambucas.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Junior never married and has no children. He lives in Belleville, New Jersey. He tells Bobby Baccalieri that he has a problem with feet and does not even like talking about bunions.


title: Junior Soprano

text: In "The Many Saints of Newark", Junior Soprano briefly takes over as caporegime of his brother Giovanni "Johnny Boy" Soprano's crew from 1967 after he is sent to prison. At the funeral of "Hollywood Dick" Moltisanti, the father of fellow capo Richard "Dickie" Moltisanti, Junior takes Dickie aside and confides in him that he considers them to be brothers. He offers Dickie his hand in friendship and promises to provide any favors he requires.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Five years later in 1972, Johnny Boy is released from prison and takes back the reins of his crew. To Junior's chagrin, Johnny reprimands him for apparently letting his neighborhood "fall apart" in his absence. Johnny urges his brother to follow Dickie's "example", but this only fractures the once-close relationship that Corrado once held with Dickie; it is clear that Johnny is beginning to hold Dickie favorably to his brother, who now sees Dickie as a rival, not a partner.


title: Junior Soprano

text: Sometime later, Junior attends the funeral of Buddha, a made man killed by Harold McBrayer's African-American mob in a gangland hit. Corrado slips down the stairs of the mortuary, and Dickie laughs, who mocks Junior as he struggles to get back onto his feet. Months later, Junior is further frustrated when his injury prevents him from having sex with his comare. Humiliated and enraged, Junior secretly orders a hit on Dickie Moltisanti, knowing it will be blamed on Harold's crew. Moltisanti is shot in the head from behind in the driveway of his home by an unknown assailant. At Moltisanti's own funeral, Corrado stares coldly at his corpse, content with the knowledge that Dickie's death will never come back to him.