FRANCISCO S. TATAD
FOR the first few days of the year, the Malacañang press and the public lost all contact with President Rodrigo Duterte. They heard some of his pre-taped TV statements, but missed his unrepeatable presence. A front-page story in the Philippine Star, written by Malacañang reporters Edith Regalado and Christina Mendez on January 5, 2017, noted that he was last seen at the December 30 celebration of Rizal Day, and when he visited the victims of an explosion in Hilongos, Leyte. Then he dropped out of sight.