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ELEKSYON 2022

Leody de Guzman-Walden Bello tandem to push for ban on endo


The tandem of presidential and vice-presidential aspirants Leodegario “Ka Leody” de Guzman and Walden Bello, in their electoral platform which was released on Saturday, pushed for for the absolute ban on all forms of contractualization or endo through “complete prohibition on trilateral arrangements.”

The tandem was also proposing the implementation of a P750 national minimum wage, to immediately raise the salaries of healthcare and other frontliners dealing with the COVID19 pandemic, to guarantee free and quality health care for all, and to impose a “billionaire’s tax” on the country’s richest 250 families.

“To address inequality, impose a Wealth Tax on the net worth of individuals of above P100 million,” they said in their economic platform.

The tandem argued that the 250 to 300 richest families have a combined net worth of P31.66 trillion; with a wealth tax of 1%, the government can generate P316 billion, P633 billion for 2% wealth tax, and P1 trillion for 3% wealth tax from the richest in the country.

The de Guzma-Bello tandem was also pushing for the recovery and return to the public domain of the remaining “stolen wealth” of the Marcoses amounting to P126 billion and the prosecution of the “Marcos family members who have kept and utilized their stolen wealth.”

Other items in their economic platform included:

  • Re-orient the economy towards production for meeting domestic needs, rather than production for profits and exports
  • Uphold the principle of workers’ control; ensure that workers are consulted in all industries and economic sectors through the establishment of unions and workers’ committees parallel to corporate boards for policy and daily operations… dissolve all holding companies, absolutely ban contractualization in all forms
  • Institute small farmers’ control of agriculture and ensure food sovereignty
  • Free the country from the recurring and oppressive debt burden by canceling debt repayments for five years; repealing the automatic debt appropriation law and reviewing and auditing existing debts

Political reforms

The tandem, likewise, pushed for the following political reforms:

  • institute direct democracy and popular participation in decision-making at all levels of government
  • demilitarize society, uphold human rights, and punish mass-murderers and plunderers
  • uphold the right to self-determination of non-majoritarian ethnic communities
  • formulate a truly independent and internationalist foreign policy as a political principle founded on greater cooperation among states, nations, and peoples to advance common interests that transcend national, political, cultural, racial, and class boundaries

“Ang platapormang bitbit namin ni Walden ay ang tanging plataporma ngayong eleksyon na handang komprontahin ang yaman, interes, at kapangyarihan ng mga bilyonaryo, na nagawa pang lumago sa panahon ng pandemya’t resesyon habang milyun-milyong Pilipino ay lugmok sa kahirapan,” de Guzman said.

(The platform that we carry is the only platform this election that is ready to confront the wealth, interests, and power of billionaires, all of which had increased during the pandemic and recession while millions of Filipinos were mired in poverty.)

Bello, for his part, said, “Our platform proves that we are the only force capable of stopping the Marcos-Duterte axis of evil and the only one with a comprehensive program for social transformation.”

In addition to the above-mentioned measures, the tandem’s platform also voiced support for a whole range of other proposals long advanced by the urban poor, women, LGBTQ groups, and other groups in the so-called “laylayan,” such as providing decent housing for slum-dwellers, enacting a divorce law, and promoting “marriage equality” or same-sex marriage.

Bello called on other candidates to also immediately announce their platforms.

“This election campaign should center on platforms instead of personalities. But right now we are the only ones who have so far come out with a comprehensive program and plan of action. Why are the other candidates taking so long to tell us how they intend to uplift the lives of workers, women, and other people in the laylayan?” the vice-presidential aspirant said.

De Guzman called on the public to comment on their platform and to be involved in refining and finalizing it.

The presidential aspirant emphasized that the program they presented today was a “living draft” that they were presenting to the people to elicit feedback and encourage discussion.

De Guzman is the presidential candidate of the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM).

Both he and Bello are running under Laban ng Masa, a broader coalition of progressive groups.

The tandem intends to organize grassroots consultations on their platform in the coming months and then come up with a revised final version by February 2022. — DVM, GMA News

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