When Rodrigo Roa Duterte was elected as the 16th President of the Philippines, his radicalism or progressive attitude played an important role in governing the state. It was an impetus for his political, social, economic, and foreign policies. In this paper, I will assess Duterte’s position on various issues and controversies from the viewpoint of Chantal Mouffe’s theory of radical democracy. Using the interpretative method, I will examine the text from various works which purport to show Duterte as a radical leader. As a caveat, ordinary citizens and top scholars alike have displayed their huge bias against Duterte. This paper argues that President Duterte simply wanted to give what was due to the Filipino people. While he sought pragmatic outcomes, Duterte also knew that conflict and contestation are the starting point of the political. Duterte’s style of leadership, in this way, presents itself as a reaction to elite democracy. Radical democracy is not meant to reject and/or replace democratic universalism. It desires to particularize what is needed by the existing democratic struggles so aimed at effecting structural change.