ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 outbreak has hit the Philippines hard. The main response to the crisis has been the use of lockdowns and other crude coercive measures, reminiscent of the strategies deployed in the Rodrigo Duterte administration’s infamous war on drugs. Although the effectiveness of the government’s response to the pandemic has been mixed at best, Duterte himself remains extraordinarily popular. Duterte has retained his populist image of a strong but sympathetic leader, while the failure to control the spread of the virus is attributed to local government failures and individual noncompliance. Exacerbating trends underway since the beginning of the Duterte presidency, the pandemic has seen the accumulation of even greater executive dominance within the state, leaving a worrying legacy for the future of Philippines politics.
