The government’s anti-narcotics war is a priority of President Rodrigo Duterte and for violators, the results have been fatal.

But might fact mirror fiction?

That’s one thought that may cross playful minds after Duterte, an avid reader, recently sat down with his favorite author, British writer Juan Grillo.

Duterte has repeatedly mentioned Grillo and his work as a source of his own information and an influence on his decision to embark on the war on drugs.

Historian Manolo Quezon tells Mornings@ANC, by all accounts, Grillo handled his hour-long meeting with the President “quite diplomatically,” and one can only wait and see what the results of his interview with the President will reveal.

However, picking up one of Grillo’s books can help one to understand the President and understand where Duterte and Grillo differ when it comes to the narcotics trade and how governments handle them.

Quezon says, a couple of things are “surprising.”

– Mornings@ANC, 12 December 2016