Maverick wins Philippine presidency

Maverick anti-crime candidate Rodrigo ‘Digong’ Duterte won the Philippine presidential elections, following the withdrawal of his opponents.

Although the official result has not yet been declared, main rival Mar Roxas admitted defeat after polls gave Duterte an unassailable lead. Duterte said he accepted the mandate with ‘extreme humility’.

The 71-year-old stirred controversy during campaigning with his incendiary comments. He has credited his success to his tough stance on law and order.

Meanwhile, Rodrigo Duterte vowed a relentless crackdown on crime after securing a landslide presidential victory built on foul-mouthed populist tirades that exposed deep voter anger at the establishment.

Duterte, the longtime mayor of the southern city of Davao, captivated Filipinos with vows of brutal but quick solutions to crime and poverty, while offering himself as a decisive strongman capable of resolving a host of other deeply entrenched problems in society.

"It's with humility, extreme humility, that I accept this, the mandate of the people," Duterte said in Davao early this morning as the results came in.

"I feel a sense of gratitude to the Filipino people," he said.