TOUGH, smart, compassionate, loyal, ethical, committed. These are the adjectives I use to describe our Vice President Inday Sara Duterte. And I believe that the 32 million Filipinos who voted for her last May 2022 elections share the same.
As director of the Al Qalam Institute, the last quarter of 2022 we have coordinated with the DepEd national office for the peace education modules that we plan to roll out in different partner schools in the country. In our engagement with key officials of DepEd, I learned that VP Inday’s office faces a number of challenges. Her role as Secretary of DepEd requires astuteness in solving problems that her office encounters each day. From the complex long-term impact of the Covid-19 pandemic with the grade school students to the radicalization of our youth.
I also learned that schools in elementary, high schools, and tertiary institutions (under the Commission on Higher Education) are highly susceptible to infiltration and influence by the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). Teachers and students are specifically targeted and recruited by both above-ground and underground mass organizations affiliated with the CPP-NPA-NDF.
Despite all these realities on the ground, what I find particularly frustrating is we are living in a political climate that often creates double standards of looking at the Confidential Funds and Intelligence Funds (CIF). Like, why other offices maintain their CIF, while Speaker Martin stripped out OVP and DepEd’s budget of CIF. But this is water under the bridge.
In our increasingly interconnected world, the dissemination of information and the power to shape public opinion have become significant sources of influence. The way I look at it, VP Inday is facing a tough challenge from her political opponents in what we call in the academia “cognitive warfare” (CW).
CW involves the strategic manipulation of information and narratives to achieve political, military, or social objectives. Moreover, CW refers to the use of psychological tactics, misinformation, disinformation, propaganda, and other means to manipulate public opinion, sow discord, undermine trust, and ultimately influence the decision-making processes of targeted populations. It harnesses various platforms, from traditional media outlets to social media platforms, to disseminate tailored narratives that serve the interests of the aggressor group or organization.
We also need to distinguish this from principled journalism. This one aims to uphold the principles of accuracy, fairness, and impartiality, cognitive warfare deliberately distorts or fabricates information to achieve strategic objectives. Principled journalism is guided by ethics, transparency, and accountability, with the primary purpose of presenting verified news and analysis to the public. Cognitive warfare, on the other hand, may present partial or false narratives using manipulative techniques to sway public perception in favor of the aggressor's agenda.
But knowing VP Inday, she is tough, smart, compassionate, loyal, ethical, committed. She knows how to choose her battles. Sun Tzu once said, “one may know how to conquer without being able to do it." This principle emphasizes the importance of strategy and planning in leadership. It suggests that victory is not solely dependent on physical strength or the ability to overpower one's opponents, but rather on careful planning, understanding of the situation, and wise decision-making. And Mam Inday knows this and she will rise above all these!
