Get to know Senate bets Abejo, Alfajora, Baldevarona, Chong, Macalintal on ‘Kandidato’

GMA News TV's Investigative Documentaries aired another episode of interviews among the 2019 senatorial candidates last Thursday to educate the voters before the upcoming midterm elections.

The profiles and platforms of senatorial aspirants Evangeline Abejo, Richard Alfajora, Jonathan Baldevarona, Glenn Chong, and Romulo Macalintal were featured in the latest episode of the Kandidato series.

Abejo: Advocate of urban poor

Urban poor advocate Evangeline Abejo has high hopes that the sector will have effective representation in the Senate.

For eight years, she was the vice chairperson of a national urban poor sector council in Visayas under the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC).

Abejo said that if elected, she wants to work towards converting the NAPC into a department to allow institutional reforms that would benefit the marginalized sector.

A financial planner in an insurance company, promoting financial literacy is among Abejo's advocacies too.

Alfajora: Supporter of federalism, anti-illegal drugs campaign

Cebu farmer and local broadcaster Richard Alfajora said he will put federalism and efforts against illegal drugs in his legislative agenda if he gets elected as senator.

He emphasized the need for the integration of the barangay tanods in the Philippine National Police to ensure peaceful communities.

Alfajora, an independent candidate, is also pushing to upgrade the system of casting votes in the country by using electronic ballots and touch-screen digital devices with non-rewritable memory.

Baldevarona: From law enforcer to lawmaker

Retired police officer Jonathan Baldevarona would like to continue serving the Filipino people as a lawmaker in the Senate after nearly three decades of working as a law enforcer.

His flagship program would be to consolidate all family-related legislation into one "Family Protection Code" in a bid to address the root causes of corruption and criminality. Baldevarona said that good parenting would be key in nation-building.

Baldevarona is also in favor of divorce and lowering the age of criminal liability.

Chong to push for transparent polls, free school bus system

Former Biliran representative Glenn Chong is running for senator to ensure that his advocacy for "clean, orderly, and transparent" elections will be instilled in a greater Filipino population.

He said that his fight against electoral sabotage, which started in 2010, is far from over. Chong pushes for a "hybrid" election system which will employ manual casting of votes and automated transmission.

Chong said that if he wins in the midterm elections, he will also advocate for the free school bus service he implemented in Biliran, which he claims has increased enrollment and students' attendance rate, especially those who are financially challenged.

Macalintal: Centenarian law must be amended

Election lawyer Romulo Macalintal said he will prioritize the rights of senior citizens if he becomes a senator. He proposes that the P100,000 awarded to centenarians under the Centenarian Law should be given to them on an installment basis as early as they reach the age of 80.

Macalintal, running under the opposition slate Otso Diretso, further said that if senior citizens live beyond 100 years old, they should be entitled to an additional yearly allowance of P100,000 each.

The 71-year-old lawyer handled the 2004 election case of former President and incumbent House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. He also serves as the election lawyer of Vice President Leni Robredo against her political rival former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr.

— Dona Magsino/BM, GMA News