Philippines

Disengagement may be too polite a term to describe the methodical knee-capping by attrition of the former president, carried out by the most unlikely coalition allies in the House.

Administration allies moved to weaken Duterte’s political strength by gradually raiding the ranks of the once dominant party, PDP-Laban, an effortless undertaking in reality. A key supporter of Vice President Sara Duterte, former president and Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, was a major casualty of the ensuing pogrom.

But last year’s highlight reel was the dramatic and well-orchestrated series of revelations, timed with deliberations on the national budget, that painted the Vice President as a secret fund-obsessed brat with little noteworthy credentials other than a quick temper and a solid punch.