Bongbong: Presidential bets' economic, pandemic plans 'ill-conceived'

Former Senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said Saturday that other presidential candidates have insufficiently  thought through their plans for the economy, and pandemic response.

"Noong nakita ko ‘yung mga ibang tatakbo, sabi ko [habang] nakikinig sa kanila, hindi yata napag-isipan ng mabuti ‘yung kanilang sinasabi na plataporma o plano para sa COVID-19 at ekonomiya," he said in an interview with Erwin Tulfo, and Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar.

(I listened to the plans of other presidential candidates regarding the economy and the fight against COVID-19, and I suspect these were not well-thought-out.)

Decision to run

On why he is gunning for the presidency, Bongbong said that after looking closely at the political situation in the country, he decided to run.

"Syempre tinitingnan ko ‘yung political situation. Ano ba talagang mangyayari dito, pumanig lahat sa opposition," he said.

(Of course I looked at the political situation, and what could come out of it. What happens is that all have rushed to the side of the opposition.)

"Ako nakapanig naman sa administrasyon. Sabi ko, siguro kung ako ‘yung nandoon, siguro kaya ko na ipaglaban ito at somepoint sabi ko sige, I’ll run for presidency," he added.

(I am allied with the administration. And I thought, maybe, we can fight for this. So at some point, I said, I’ll go ahead and run for president.)

Asked if he will take inspiration from his father's Masagana 99 program, Marcos Jr. said, "Yes. Hindi natin nakalimutan yun, hindi lang natin ginagamit."

Masagana 99 was an agricultural program of then President Ferdinand Marcos to increase rice production.

It was launched in 1973 as an emergency program in response to the severe rice shortage due to pests and natural disasters at the time.

By 1980, however, problems with the credit scheme rendered the loans inaccessible to rich landowners while leaving poor farmers in debt.

Spreading fake news

Bongbong belies claims that his camp is spreading misinformation or fake news.

During a town hall meeting in Marikina on Saturday, he was asked how he can be trusted amid the continued spread of disinformation.

“Ang pinakamaganda para maiwasan ‘yung mga lumalabas na hindi tama, kailangan kami din. Hindi kami gumagawa ng fake news. Para alam ng tao, lahat ng sasabihin naming ay totoo,” he said.

He added: "Unang-una wala kayong naririnig na fake news sa akin, ang daming sinisisi sa akin na pinapalitan daw namin ang kasaysayan ng Pilipinas.” 

To fight the dissemination of fake news, the former Senator said he will improve his credibility and help the public to research more about history.

“Pagka-tinatanong sakin sa social media, usually maraming tanong yon tungkol sa ama ko eh – ‘ano ba talaga nangyari? bakit ba ganito?’ eh 'di papaliwanag ko,” Marcos pointed out.

(When I am asked on social media, there are usually a lot of questions about my father – ‘what really happened? Why is this?’ I always explain to them.)

He further said, “Halimbawa mga bata, magtanong kayo sa mga ninuno niyo, lolo niyo, magulang niyo na buhay noon. Ano ba talaga ang buhay noong panahon ng Marcos?”

(For example, children should ask their ancestors, grandfather, and parents who lived then. What life really was like during Marcos’ era.)

Dignified silence

Marcos Jr. on Sunday urged Filipinos to respect each other’s freedom to choose the candidate they will support in the upcoming elections.

Marcos’ appeal came after the noticeable increase in “vitriolic exchanges” among supporters of competing candidates on various social media platforms.

“There is no reason for us to fight with one another over whom to support in the coming elections.  Let's respect each other's freedom to choose.  My response to hateful speech has always been to maintain a dignified silence because bickering is a waste of time,” he said.

“Now more than ever, we should not lose sight of our goal of uniting the country and helping our people free themselves from the grip of poverty that has weakened his belief in himself," he added.

Meanwhile, Marcos also asked his fellow candidates to separate politics from the welfare of the people.

“Marami tayong hindi pagkakasunduan. Pero pagkasunduan natin na mahal natin ang Filipino at mag-umpisa tayo doon. Magkaisa muna tayo,” he said Saturday in an interview with Erwin Tulfo and Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar.

(We have lots of things we don’t agree with, but let’s agree to love the Filipinos and unite first.)

“Let’s all sit around at pag-usapan (ang mga issue) nang mabuti at masinsinan. Huwag na natin ipasok ang kulay ng pulitka, palampasin muna natin yun at isipin natin ang sa ngayon at kinabukasan,” he added.

(Let’s all sit around and carefully discuss these issues. Let’s not include politics, let go of it, and think about the present and future of our nation.)

Marcos stance on issues

LGBT

Marcos said he will uphold the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community should he president. He will support the passage the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill  as antidote to discrimination .

“Ang habol naman ng LGBT ay walang diskriminasyon. Kaya patibayin natin ang batas (SOGIE Bill). Kagaya ng ibang bansa na sinasabi na hindi ka pwede mag-discriminate kontra na kahit na sinong LGBTQ dahil siya ay gay, siya ay trans, at member of that community,” Marcos said.

(The LGBT community seeks for non-discrimination. So, let’s improve the SOGIE Bill. In other countries, you cannot discriminate against anyone because he is gay or trans.

Same-sex union

Marcos reiterated that everyone should be treated equally.

“Ako, sinusundan ko ang Santo Papa. Sabi ni Pope Francis, ‘who am I to judge?’ Kaya 'di mo dapat hinuhusgahan. Dapat pare-pareho lang naman. Siguro dahil lumaki ako sa ibang lugar na hindi ito nagiging problema kaya ganon ang pananaw ko.”

(I agree with Pope Francis when he said, "who am I to judge?" – that’s why you should not judge them. Everyone should be equal. Maybe because I grew up in another country where this is not an issue, that’s why this is my view.)

Rising fuel cost

Bongbong said that he does not have any control on the prices of fuel. What he plans to do is government subsidy, oil price stabilization fund (OPSF), and continuous assistance to public transport.

“Halimbawa ang presyo ay P80, biglang tumaas ng P100. Baka naman yung gobyerno ang magko-cover na roon sa 15 o 18 pesos para yung pagtaas eh dalawang piso na lang para hindi masyadong mahirapan,” he said.

(For instance, the price is P80 per liter, then suddenly it rises to P100. Maybe the government can cover for 15 or 18-peso increase so that the drivers would only have to deal with P2 or P5 increase, and it won't be too hard for them.)

“’Yung mga oil company, magko-kontribusyon sa pondo ng OPSF. Kapag biglaang tumaas ang presyo ng langis ay magbabayad ang stabilization fund para nga hindi masyadong mabilis ang akyat ng presyo,” he added.

The oil companies will contribute to the OPSF fund. If the price of oil suddenly increases, the stabilization fund can soften the impact.

Marcos elaborated, “’Yung sabihin natin, aakyat ng 5 piso, ‘yung 5 piso na yun dahan dahanin yun. Siguro kung mula Linggo hanggang Lunes aakyat agad, ay gagawin natin ng ilang buwan, dalawang buwan, tatlong  buwan. Baka naman sakali pagdating natin doon sa dulo medyo naayos ang problema.”

(Let’s say, the price of oil will go up by P5, that P5 increase will be slowly implemented. Say, it goes up Sunday to Monday, we can implement the increase after a few more months --  two or three months. Maybe we can fix the problem through this scheme.)

Jeepney modernization

Marcos said that the jeepney's condition is an important thing to consider in the modernization plan, and not the age of the vehicle. 

“Huwag na dapat tingnan ang edad ng sasakyan kundi ang kondisyon niya” (Don't look at the age of the vehicle but its condition), he added.

Solo parents

To help solo parents raise their children, Marcos said he will create more scholarship programs.

"Kailangan natin paramihin ang scholarship grants. Kasi yung mga mahihirap na matatalino, na masipag, nawawala sa atin eh. Scholarship ang talagang pinakamaganda para dyan," he pointed out.

(We need to increase our scholarship programs. Because we are losing smart and hardworking students. Scholarship is really the best solution.)

Senior citizens

For senior citizens, the Senator said that he will expand their health insurance.

"'Yung philhealth ang problema lang kasi hindi maganda ang pagpapatakbo. Ayusin natin ang health insurance.”

Likewise, he assured the public that retirement benefits of senior citizens will be given in full if he is elected president, adding that he is in favor of giving jobs to those who are willing and able to work.

Moreover, Marcos said he would overhaul the country's healthcare system.

"’Yung PhilHealth di na masyadong maganda ang patakbo, kailangan talaga ayusin yan. May pera naman, may pondo naman ang philhealth,' di lang magagamit nang tama kaya i-re-design natin ang PhilHealth para talaga mabilis yang bumaba (ang pera)," he said.

He pointed out that healthcare should be brought down to regions so that people don't need to go to urban centers for treatment.

"Ibaba natin yung healthcare. Gusto ko yung konsepto ng RHU (Regional Health Unit). Yung RHU , mayroon kada clustered barangay, mayroong maliliit na clinic. Yung clinic na yan binibisita ng doktor, ng nurse, ng midwife mga dalawa tatlong beses sa isang linggo," Marcos said.

OFWs

For Overseas Filipino Workers, Marcos said he will conduct retraining programs and check with the labor market what jobs are in demand.

He also bared that OFWs should have housing programs, scholarships for their children and other benefits for their families, which will be under the Department of Migrant Workers.

"Maganda nito, magkakaroon tayo ng Department of Migrant Workers at lahat ng mga ofw isasailalim diyan sa department na 'yan. Hindi pa nabubuo ang department kapag nagkataon na ako ay nakaupo ay lahat ng ito ng napag-usapan natin ay ilalagay natin sa loob ng department of migrant workers," he said.

Consultations

Finally, Marcos proposed weekly and monthly meetings with community and church leaders along with a representative from the government.

"Para naririnig ng gobyerno lahat ng pangyayari doon sa area na iyon," he added.  —LBG, GMA News