IF PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte is starting to feel some gustiness in the political wind blowing from across the Pacific, it could be a hint of a typhoon headed in his direction.

Whether the storm signal will be raised or the turbulence will dissipate depends on how Duterte – suddenly thrust into a high-stakes geopolitical game — plays it. As the gale intensifies, he could bend gently with the wind like the bamboo or resist rigidly and break.

When near his breaking point, will Duterte’s legion of 16.6 million voters and his supposed 91-percent trust rating be sufficient to save him? Will his newfound friend across the disputed waters to the west come to his succor?

The winds rattling the eaves of Duterte’s less than three-month-old administration include negative public statements and private messages from foreign capitals, dire analyses of think tanks, and a sudden surge of unfavorable editorials and reports in the foreign press.

In the eye of the brewing storm are ignored expressions of concern for human rights violations, a perceived veering away from treaty alliances, and sheer diplomatic rudeness.

We have seen similar buildup of bad political weather before, and we are genuinely worried for President Duterte whose simplicity and sincerity we may not see for a long time after him.

The revelation last Thursday by a confessed hitman that Duterte himself ordered summary killings when he was Davao City mayor feeds accusations that he carried over that gangland style to his ongoing anti-drugs drive that has scored some 3,000 kills in less than three months.

The reaction in the Senate where Edgar Matobato, the self-confessed executioner, testified was mostly along partisan lines — with Duterte allies questioning the witness’ credibility and others giving him the benefit of the doubt.

• Circus coming soon to House probe

IN THE PHILIPPINE setting, how can Executive agencies such as the justice department credibly conduct an objective investigation of extrajudicial killings associated with the President?

Similar doubts devalue police investigation of fellow policemen who have gunned down suspected drug pushers and users. Police reports do not even bother to note if there are powder burns or similar indications on suspects who arresting officers claimed shot it out with them.

It will be another rigmarole when the justice department herds convicted drug lords to the coming House inquiry into alleged narco links of Sen. Leila de Lima, who presides over the Senate hearing on extrajudicial killings where Matobato testified.

The drug lords can be expected to confirm the justice department’s claim that De Lima received big sums from them when she was justice secretary, and the senadora will vehemently deny it. The House inquiry will then degenerate into a media/public relations circus.

If Matobato – whose life is now in danger – is lying and, worse, is allowing himself to be used by Duterte’s enemies, he should be subjected to the same gruesome torture he confessed having committed on the victims of their Davao Death Squad.

The bottom line is that we the people are entitled to know “the truth, the whole truth and nothing by the truth.”

With due respect to those who are allergic to any outside entity poking into domestic issues, we suggest that the Philippine government invite the United Nations Human Rights Council to look into the matter as an independent third party.

As Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in New York yesterday, “President Duterte can’t be expected to investigate himself, so it is crucial that the United Nations is called in to lead such an effort. Otherwise, Filipinos may never know if the President was directly responsible for extrajudicial killings.”

• Need for independent HR probe

BRASH President Duterte could flare up when directly accused of a serious infraction, especially if he were innocent. He surprised us when he had no reported immediate reaction to the Matobato disclosures.

Many times during the campaign and even after he had won the presidency, Duterte boasted of killing criminals himself. This time he was quiet. It was as if the mopping up was left to his lieutenants to give him space to maneuver if he has to.

The public would not be able to get to the bottom of the bloody mess if the investigation were left to the Duterte administration’s own men. We suggest that a third party, possibly the UN Human Rights Council, be invited to look into the alleged EJK to put closure to it.

The Human Rights Council, a subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly, is an inter-governmental body of 47 states tasked with promoting and protecting human rights around the world. It succeeded the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2006.

Under an intervention policy adopted in 1967, the HRC can investigate and report on violations. Its Special Rapporteurs conduct fact-finding missions to investigate allegations of human rights violations. But they can only visit countries that invite them.

The Philippines, an HRC member since 2007, is committed to uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights. It will be in good form for it to invite the UN council to conduct an independent investigation.

The General Assembly can suspend the rights and privileges of an HRC member that has persistently committed gross and systematic violations of human rights. Even then, President Duterte should not worry about inviting the HRC, but grab the opportunity for his administration to prove its bona fides.