Cacique democracy is a term that has been used to describe what has been observed as the feudal political system of the Philippines, where in many parts of the country local leaders remain very strong, with warlord-like powers.
[1] The term was originally coined by Irish-American political scientist Benedict Anderson.
But the United States, despite promising independence like Cuba, bought the country and wrestled control, succeeding by 1902.
They were sometimes quite progressive[citation needed] and directed towards the "modernization" of government and commerce in the Philippines.
"[5] In various Austronesian languages, datu, along with its cognates, is a title similar to cacique, and had historically been conferred upon the ruler of a maṇḍala or precolonial fiefdom.