Walden Bello: Our programs will hurt 'ultra-rich,' super powerful

Vice presidential candidate Walden Bello on Tuesday said the Philippines remained as the "sick man of Asia" because it is governed by a "sick" president.

Speaking at the proclamation rally of the Partido Lakas ng Masa in Quezon City, the former party-list representative warned some individuals and groups will be hurt by the reforms  that he and presidential candidate Leody de Guzman will institute if they win in Eleksyon 2022.                                                         

"Sa lahat ng bayan ng ASEAN, ang Pilipinas ay ang bansa na may pinakamataas na porsyento ng populasyon na nakabaon sa kahirapan. Ang di pagkapantay-pantay sa Pilipinas din ang pinakamataas sa rehiyon: mga tatlong porsyento lang ng populasyon ang nag-aari at nagkokontrol ng mahigit na 50 porsyento ng buong kayamanan ng bansa. Tayo pa rin ang itinuturing na 'sick man of Asia.' At totoo nga tayo ang sickman kasi meron tayo sick President," Bello said at his speech at the Partido ng Lakas ng Masa proclamation rally at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani.

Bello claimed he and his running mate Leody De Guzman do not offer "superficial diagnosis" on the country's illnesses and to simply attribute them to corruption, bad governance or the weakening of people's values.

"We offer no easy, deceptive solutions like 'forge national unity' (Marcos-Duterte), 'reinvigorate our values' (Robredo), 'reform government' (Lacson), or 'abolish corruption' (Pacquiao). These are slogans, not solutions," he said.

Bello acknowledged the "ultra-rich" will be hurt by their proposed structural reforms, including wealth tax and comprehensive agrarian reform.

"Yes, the program we offer will hurt; there is no use denying that. But it will hurt the very few ultra-rich and ultra-powerful for the benefit of the vast majority. The interests of this handful of families contradict the interests of the Filipino people."

Bello said preventing the Marcos-Duterte tandem by re-electing the Liberals is a "dead end."

"Ngunit ang pinakamahusay na paraan nang makamit natin ito ay hindi sa pamamagitan ng pagpapalit ng dilaw na pambalot ng mga pumalpak na pamamarahan ng nakaraang tatlumput limang taon sa pambalot na ibang kulay—azul, puti, berde, or rosas ba ito. Ito ay isang dead end, isang daan na walang patutunguan."

(The best way to do that is not by simply changing the yellow wrapper that covered up the discredited practices of the last 35 years of a failed elite democracy with a wrapper of another color—be this blue, green, white, or pink. That is a dead end.)

For Bello, a truly democratic Philippines could be achieved through democratic socialism.—LDF, GMA News