Worldly News Online

s Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he is retiring from politics and will not stand in elections next year. The 76-year-old leader said last month that he would run for the vice-presidency in 2022. The country's constitution only permits presidents to serve a single six-year term. But he now says he will withdraw, as "the overwhelming sentiment of the Filipinos is that I am not qualified". The move comes amid speculation that his daughter could run for president. Mr Duterte, a controversial "strongman" figure, came to power in 2016 promising to reduce crime and fix the country's drug crisis. But critics say that during his five years in power, Mr Duterte has encouraged police to carry out thousands of extrajudicial killings of suspects in what he has called his "war on drugs". Mr Duterte's daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio, who is currently mayor of the southern city of Davao, has given mixed messages about running for high of...

The days most anticipated moment was the election of a new president. In Nashville, tempers were running high. Irate messengers confronted at least two high-profile leaders in the halls of the convention center, accusing them of fomenting liberalism. Some leaders were provided with extra security.“We are at a defining moment for our convention,” J.D. Greear, the departing president, told the assembly in a fiery speech hours before they would elect his successor. He excoriated the “Pharisees” within the denomination who placed ideological purity over its evangelistic mission, alienating Black and Latino pastors, sexual abuse survivors, and others in their zeal.“Are we primarily a cultural and political affinity group, or do we see our primary calling as being a gospel witness?” Mr. Greear asked. “What’s the more important part of our name: Southern or Baptist?” Mr. Greear praised an earlier generation of conservatives who had kept the denomination true to its theological principles....